Armstrong put on the hot seat and responds
The Standard was quick to jump jail architect Jim Armstrong when it appeared he was on the verge of missing another deadline, which incited some county commissioners to start talking about his termination.
But Armstrong answered the challenge, meeting his ultimatum deadline last week, and saved his job in the process. He also saved the county one major headache in what could have been yet another embarrassment in what’s been a forgettable plight to build a jail addition.
Armstrong was put on the proverbial hot seat last month when Jail Oversight Committee chairman Herschel Wells became frustrated by what he called Armstrong’s lack of progress on jail designs. Wells was concerned the plans were not up to Tennessee Correctional Institute regulations, which meant the new jail addition wouldn’t be state certified.
Compounding matters was the fact the county had already paid Armstrong $114,000. And the county had already terminated one jail architect (Mark Rodgers) after paying him a huge amount of money ($70,000).
To draw a line in the sand and make Armstrong accountable to a definite timetable, Wells issued an ultimatum to have the jail plans finalized by March 17 – or face termination. And, to his credit, Armstrong met the challenge, bringing a glimmer of good news in what’s been an otherwise exhausting process of adding more jail space.
Armstrong came to last week’s meeting ready for battle and with plenty of backup. He brought along two representatives with the Tennessee Correctional Institute as well as a local jail inspector.
These three jail experts did nothing but provide positive support for Armstrong’s jail designs, reassuring commissioners that the plans easily met state standards. Armstrong also presented a letter from the state fire marshal saying the jail plans appeared to be well in order.
The best news surfacing from the meeting is that a timetable was set up to receive bids from contractors. The bid process is scheduled to begin at the start of April and end April 29 when the bid is awarded.
Finally, at long last, actual jail construction appears in sight. The process, as a whole, has been nothing short of a three-year nightmare. However, it appears better days may be in store and jail construction will soon be on the horizon.
Armstrong was put under pressure, but the Standard is pleased to report he stepped up to the challenge. The alternative of going back to square one – again – was not a palatable choice.