A Good Neighbor

DLR designs a jail that blends into community

By Hilary Ruesch

Building a jail that didn't look like a jail and didn't strike an intimidating pose on the surrounding community was the greatest challenge for the builders and designers of the Brown County Jail and Juvenile Detention Center.

First, before any shovel struck the ground, DLR Group Inc., the architectural firm that designed the jail, needed to sell the idea of the project to the people who would eventually be its neighbors, said Edward Ross, project designer with DLR. Over the course of several public meetings, DLR opened the door for the local community to help design the outside of the building, he said.

"We gave multiple material suggestions, and the neighborhood was given the final decision," Ross said.

DLR's involvement with the neighborhood included offering a 3-D, animated tour of the proposed building.

"It was a matter of getting them to visually understand what it would look like," said Scott Fettig, DLR project architect.

Taking those extra steps helped DLR reassure residents that even though their community would gain a jail, it wouldn't lose its safety and warm neighborhood atmosphere, he said.

Final results

DLR and project contractor Miron Construction took the community's suggestions and turned them into a detention center that resembles a county government structure or office building more than it does a 524-bed jail.

The building's façade has a color scheme typical of many office buildings. The entrance to the building features brick, architectural precast concrete panels, renaissance stone, exposed steel, channel lintels, prefinished metal soffits and fascia.

The absence of barbed wire and fewer barred windows on the outside of the structure gave the complex a friendlier look, Ross said.

"The key was to eliminate some of the exterior windows and install skylights instead," he said.

Miron and DLR constructed the two-story jail based on a pod -- rather than linear -- philosophy, which tied the exterior aesthetics to the need for security within. The outdoor exercise area, for example, was placed in the center of the pods so neighboring residents and passing drivers could not see the inmates.

Security within

The pod format improved interior security because each 100-cell pod requires its own security staff. The pod layout that DLR designed aids the staff in observing inmates.

"They get better viewing angles of the cells," Fettig said.

Some pods feature direct supervision where officers -- instead of working from an observation booth -- are in the room with 60 inmates. The approach allows for better sight and sound cues of potential security problems.

"It's about seeing trouble before it really becomes a problem," Fettig said.

Miron and DLR also used tried-and-true techniques in ensuring the security of the structure. The building features double-door exits, so a door cannot be unlocked if another is open.

All of the jail's equipment is up to date, but DLR didn't go overboard with new technology, Fettig said.

"We tried to be on the cutting edge with what we put in the building, but we weren't on the exploratory edge," he said.

Designers, Fettig said, worked closely with Brown County to tailor the facility to its needs. The county, he said, knew what it wanted, and that commitment to the project helped it run smoothly.

"We had a very educated client, and that's why there were no unexpected obstacles," Fettig said.

The latest work on the structure, which is estimated to serve the county for the next 20 years, almost certainly won't be the last. A project master plan calls for eventual expansion from its current capacity to about 1,200 beds.

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