Spring Break
Residents protest jail
Eau Claire county proposed an expansion of the court house in the downtown area
Emily Hartwig
Issue date: 3/13/08 Section: News
Standing across the street with her camera lens to her eye, freshman Allison Frendrick documents the latest action in the controversy surrounding the planned expansion of the Eau Claire County Jail - a proposal she calls "detrimental to our (comprehensive) plan."
Frendrick first learned about the issue last semester when she needed a topic for her Photo Communication class and her professor suggested documenting the buildings that might be torn down for the project.
From there, Frendrick said she learned more about the different sides of the issue and realized it was a major community concern.
"I don't want a jail in our downtown," Frendrick said.
Frendrick is one of a growing number of Eau Claire students and residents who are speaking out against the county's plan to expand the existing courthouse, 721 Oxford Ave., and build a new jail along the river. Residents often cite the argument that the proposal goes against the city's award-winning comprehensive plan, published in 2005.
Monday evening she and about 30 other supporters rallied outside the City Council building, waving signs and encouraging passing cars to honk for their cause.
The next step for the project, which has been in the works for over five years, goes to the city council, which must approve land re-zoning, said Brandon Buchanan, a 2005 UW-Eau Claire alumnus and city councilman at-large. Buchanan said the proposed location for the new jail - about 30 feet from the Chippewa River, between First and Second Avenues and encompassing space between Lake Street and Grand Avenue - could have been better chosen.
"Mature cities don't do that," he said. "Is this plot of land an appropriate location for a jail?"
According to the city's comprehensive plan, however, the land in question had already been set aside for "expanding the county facility with respect to the neighborhood." The plan can be viewed in full on the city's Web site.
Frank Draxler, the county's project manager, said the jail project has been under serious discussion since 2003, though space problems were reported in the 1990s. The city's comprehensive plan also recognizes the need for a new facility, he said.
Frendrick first learned about the issue last semester when she needed a topic for her Photo Communication class and her professor suggested documenting the buildings that might be torn down for the project.
From there, Frendrick said she learned more about the different sides of the issue and realized it was a major community concern.
"I don't want a jail in our downtown," Frendrick said.
Frendrick is one of a growing number of Eau Claire students and residents who are speaking out against the county's plan to expand the existing courthouse, 721 Oxford Ave., and build a new jail along the river. Residents often cite the argument that the proposal goes against the city's award-winning comprehensive plan, published in 2005.
Monday evening she and about 30 other supporters rallied outside the City Council building, waving signs and encouraging passing cars to honk for their cause.
The next step for the project, which has been in the works for over five years, goes to the city council, which must approve land re-zoning, said Brandon Buchanan, a 2005 UW-Eau Claire alumnus and city councilman at-large. Buchanan said the proposed location for the new jail - about 30 feet from the Chippewa River, between First and Second Avenues and encompassing space between Lake Street and Grand Avenue - could have been better chosen.
"Mature cities don't do that," he said. "Is this plot of land an appropriate location for a jail?"
According to the city's comprehensive plan, however, the land in question had already been set aside for "expanding the county facility with respect to the neighborhood." The plan can be viewed in full on the city's Web site.
Frank Draxler, the county's project manager, said the jail project has been under serious discussion since 2003, though space problems were reported in the 1990s. The city's comprehensive plan also recognizes the need for a new facility, he said.
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