By Pat Culverhouse
A new women’s prison facility in the parish has become one step closer to reality following a Tuesday vote by the Webster Parish Police Jury during its finance committee meeting.
Jury members voted unanimously to award a contract for construction of the facility to Testament Construction Services of Shreveport. Testament’s low bid of $5.120 million was the lowest of three proposals considered.
Engineers originally estimated the cost of the facility at $4.5 million, and bids received earlier this year saw three companies submit proposals ranging from a low of $7.2 million to a high of $8.6 million.
Plans call for the prison to be constructed on parish-owned property on Penal Farm Rd., not far from the location of the old parish penal farm.
Bidders had been asked to submit two bids; one for the total project and an alternate which would have contained only the foundation, cells, electrical, plumbing and other basics.
“I think we need to go ahead with the total project, and I really think we need to do it today,” Jury President Jim Bonsall told his cohorts. “We have around two and a half million dollars in federal money we have to spend before we lose it.”
That federal money was from the American Rescue Act of 2021 which was allocated to local governments to assist in recovery from the COVID pandemic. And, the police jury will also receive financial assistance for the prison from a more local source.
Webster Parish Sheriff Jason Parker reminded police jury members his office has dedicated two million dollars to the project, calling it something “…essential to the parish. We need it.”
Female prisoners are currently being held on the top level of the parish courthouse. Police jury members have noted a litany of problems over the years with the location, where from 60-65 women from Webster and other jurisdictions are housed.
Bonsall said he would like to begin the process immediately to award the bid and let the company begin all necessary steps to get the project in motion.
Following a public hearing at Tuesday’s meeting, jury members gave approval to the public body’s 2025 budget totaling just over $22.254 million. Budgeted expenditures come in at a little over $17.659 million, leaving a $4.595 reserve for the budget year.
In other votes, police jury members:
• Approved the appointment of Melinda Davidson as Director of the WPPJ Office of Community Services for 2025.
• Reappointed Lisa C. Balkom, Jim Bonsall and Col. Carl Thompson to the board of Pine Country Education District for terms ending Dec. 31, 2026.
• Reappointed Brian Williams and Tynesa Grigsby to the board of the Webster Parish Communications District for four-year terms ending 2028.
• Passed resolution approving a special tax renewal election in Fire Protection District No. 2 (Sibley) on March 29, 2025.
• Approved appointment of Mickey Chandler to a two-year term on the board of Webster Parish Fire Dist. 7.
• Approved appointments of Sara McDaniel, Kyle Robertson and Rachel Longfellow Miller to the board of the Webster Parish Convention & Visitors Commission for terms ending Dec. 31, 2027.
• Approved appointment of Linda Watson to the Webster Parish Library Board, and Nancy Hines as the Police Jury member of the board.
