CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) The Charlottesville City Council delayed a vote on funding the proposed $49 million Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail renovation project after initial contractor bids came in over budget. Vice Mayor Brian Pinkston, who also serves as vice chair of the jail authority board, confirmed on Cville Right Now that the city received pricing last Friday that exceeded projections.

“The bids exceeded what our budget was,” Pinkston said. “So we’re going to be in a process of evaluating options and trimming or streamlining scope.”

The Council had planned to vote on the renovation plan at Monday’s meeting, but removed the item from the agenda Friday.

Pinkston defended the project, citing both ethical and logistical needs, including poor conditions in existing facilities and the need for ADA compliance and mental health infrastructure.

“That jail is not in a state of habitability, I think wrong ethically for the people that are incarcerated there and it’s not acceptable for the people that work there,” he said.

He emphasized that the renovation would not expand the jail’s capacity, but instead modernize outdated infrastructure. 

“If a person finds themselves in that facility, we want to have everything available to treat them humanely and ethically,” Pinkston said.

Originally proposed by the jail’s board in 2021, the project – with its proposed $49 million price tag – includes the demolition of the 50-year-old east wing and the construction of a new two-story structure to take its place.

Charlottesville officials now plan to rework the project over the next few weeks, with Pinkston stressing the importance of staying within budget. Albemarle County was scheduled to take up the matter this week as well, but that vote may also be postponed.

“There was no point in voting on that bond finance instrument if we were having issues with what the actual bids came in,” Pinkston said, adding that revisions could reflect some community calls for a scaled-back alternative. 

That would be a victory for critics of the plan, including the People’s Coalition, who argue that the price tag is too high and that too much of the work is to improve the outer appearance of the facility and doesn’t impact inmates’ quality of life. Fraleigh and other group members spoke out against the proposal at Monday’s Council meeting.

“People that have been, you know, clamoring for a different version of the jailed innovation may get their wishes,” Pinkston said. “Whether that will be the right project overall, I don’t know the best project.”

Funding for the renovation would also come from Albemarle and Nelson Counties.

Albemarle County’s Board of Supervisors was set to vote on the proposal Wednesday night. The jail question was still on the official agenda as of Tuesday midday and Albemarle County officials did not immediately respond to requests for confirmation it would be voted on this week.

Nelson County’s next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 10. The agenda is not yet available.