Cole County to refinance debt owed on jail facility

Cole County leaders agreed Tuesday to refinance the debt service owed on the jail.

The total amount of outstanding debt service on the Cole County Jail after the $5,858,868 refund is $18,974,903. The county only refunded the 2011 Series Certificates of Participation.

Under the new plan, the county will save $211,528.07 over the next six years with an average savings of $35,254.68 per year according to Cole County Auditor Kristen Berhorst.

“It’s a fragile state that we’re in, with the stuff that we need right now,” said Capt. John Wheeler with the Cole County Sheriff’s Department. “We definitely need some personnel and we need some pay raises. So, hopefully, some of this money will be able to go toward some of these actions.”

Wheeler said the Sheriff’s Office will soon submit a budget to the county that will account for some of the refunded money. Wheeler is set to take over as Cole County sheriff in January.