Kane County on board with hiring extra jail staff

Twenty-four more correctional officers would be hired to staff the new Kane County Jail being built in St. Charles Township under a measure recommended by the county board's executive committee Wednesday.

Their salaries would be covered by a $676,000 line item included in the fiscal 2008 budget approved by the county board last year. The board needs to pass a resolution as a matter of record officially adding the positions to the Kane County Sheriff's Department. The board will vote on the measure next week.

If approved, the sheriff's office would employ 128 correctional officers to staff the 640-bed jail. The $58 million facility, scheduled to open later this year, will replace the smaller jail in Geneva.

"We're in such a time crunch to get the jail opened," jail Cmdr. Pat Keaty said.

Start dates for the new hires would be staggered to absorb the expenditure across the fiscal 2008 and 2009 budgets, finance director Cheryl Pattelli said.

In fiscal 2007, the sheriff's office budgeted $6.3 million for correctional officers' salaries. That increased to $7.5 million in fiscal 2008 and is expected to top $8 million in fiscal 2009, according to Keaty.