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County could save $1M in feeding prisoners

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By Josh Sweigart, Staff Writer 5:53 PM Monday, December 28, 2009

HAMILTON — Butler County officials say they may save $1 million annually after bidding out a jail contract that has gone to a local agency for years with no bid.

Commissioners awarded a contract Monday, Dec. 28, to Aramark Correctional Services to provide food to prisoners at the county’s jails for roughly 92 cents per meal.

The contract is estimated to cost the county roughly $1 million a year, or half what current contractor Resolutions, Community Solutions, bid for the same work.

The move is the first in a series of contracts bid out this year worth a total of more than $6 million in work currently done by Hamilton-based Resolutions.

The county’s arrangement with Resolutions came under fire when some worried that the work — running all facets of the county’s three jails except for security, which is provided by the sheriff — was given to Resolutions with no bid.

Commissioners also officially terminated their agreement with Resolutions Monday, effective Feb. 15.

Throughout the year, the county closed the jail owned by Resolutions, cancelled education and substance-abuse programs and signed a settlement agreement with the agency over work it oversaw in constructing the Court Street Jail with no contract.

The other contracts that were bid out, including maintenance, plumbing and electrical work at the jails, could be awarded next week, said Maj. William Stump, who runs the jails.

“We hope we’re going to have a smooth transition (to the new vendor),” Stump said, adding that the other contracts could lead to “additional savings.”

Stump said the new food vendor will continue serving the infamous “warden burger,” a bland, but nutritional sandwich made of turkey loaf and cabbage and provided to prisoners who misbehave.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2175 or jsweigart@coxohio.com.

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Do the inmates work in the kitchen at the jail?

Alex
4:00 PM, 12/30/2009

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Wasting tax dollars is sort of misbehaving, maybe Rick and Bill should eat a few Warden Burgers.

Ned
3:58 PM, 12/30/2009

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Over Rick Jones time in office the taxpayers have overpaid $30 million dollars to feed inmates. Jolivette give’s his son a low paying summer job and it’s a big deal, Furmon’s son-in-law has a job with the county and the roof is blown off. Yet Rick Jones has half a dozen no bid contracts at the jail cost the taxpayers what may be a 100 million of dollars and it’s no big deal. The Journal News, County Prosecutor and State Ethics Commission has gone wild over smaller issues but on this nothing.

Izzy
12:48 PM, 12/30/2009

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Let me see if I understand this, Resolutions was charging the county $6 million a year for Food Services at the jail, but weren’t they also using some jail inmates to help in food service. Resolutions was charging $13.41 per day per inmate but after biding the food service it’s going to cost on $2.76 cents a day.

Izzy
12:45 PM, 12/30/2009

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Its about time. Reso has had a free hand at everything that went on at the jail. Bye Bye Steve and Jean

ric
3:23 PM, 12/29/2009

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