The location of a new county jail site may be close to being resolved after the Warren County Board of Supervisors Monday voted to locate a new jail facility in the Ceres Research and Industrial Interplex.

Warren County Board of Supervisors President Richard George last week said the jail site, which has come under intense scrutiny, would be ideal in the industrial park.

George said there is a tract of land “with ample space for a jail.”

“There’s no other development in that immediate area of the industrial park,” George said. “Utilities are already in place, sewer, water, gas and power.”

A week ago, Vicksburg Mayor George Flaggs appointed a committee “to look at the construction, design and operation of a jail/holding facility inside the city or outside the county seat of Warren County.”

Flaggs said this committee will conduct a feasibility study “of the cost and operational use of a jail/holding facility inside and outside the county seat of Warren County” and assist in the drafting of any legislation necessary that is required by law for this project. Once complete, the committee will make a recommendation to the Board of Mayor and Alderman.

Flaggs said the committee will “work with the Warren County Board of Supervisors to facilitate a compromised use of such a facility.”

“The construction of a new jail for Vicksburg and Warren County is critical for the future of the city,” Flaggs said.

George, however, said the construction of a county jail is the responsibility of the county.

“That’s the law,” George said. “The city has every right to build their own facility if they want to, but we are the only one’s responsible for building a county jail.”

In their October meeting, the Supervisors hired Greg Thomas to assess the value of a 50-acre tract located off Old Highway 27 between Miss. 27 and Berryman Road. This location has been met with resistance from the business community and neighbors in the area who fear potential safety and property value issues.

In September, the supervisors heard from Stantec’s Brian Robbins and John McKee about the two proposed properties for the new jail, which they previously said they hoped to have completed by 2019.

The second site was a 47-acre property known as the Pine Woods property, which is located off U.S. 80 and near the site of the former Pine Woods Hotel.

During the Sept. 25 work session, McKee said he recommended the Berryman Road site as it would be easier to build on and require considerably less work to run a sewer system to the site.

The Pine Wood site would require approximately 5,000 feet of sewer in order to tie into the city sewage city costing $200,000 and require upgrades to the pumping station. There are also several structures that would have to be demolished at the site and mobile homes that would have to be moved.

The Berryman Road property would require only 1,300 feet of sewage piping and be able to tie in near the YMCA costing $155,000.