—Editorial— Closed session on new jail site seems improper The Portage County Board of Supervisors said at its Oct. 12 meeting that a closed session is tentatively scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 8, to discuss whether to build a new jail downtown or find an outlying site. The announced intent is for the board to discuss the issue and then hold a public informational hearing, making a decision about a new jail at the regular board meeting the next week. Wisconsin's Open Meeting Law allows governmental bodies to hold a closed session for "deliberating or negotiating the purchasing of public properties, the investing of public funds, or conducting other specified public business, whenever competitive or bargaining reasons require a closed session." That last phrase: "whenever competitive or bargaining reasons require a closed session" raises a red flag about the real intent of the meeting. Is the board talking about purchasing some specific sites? Or is this a fishing expedition to build consensus for a site, airing in private among supervisors what they might not want to say in public? The Associated Bank annex has been publicly identified as one property the county is interested in purchasing, so supervisors could talk about negotiating that purchase. But discussion about the Lincoln Center property, which the city owns, or attempting to close Elk Street aren't proper topics. Finding a site for a new jail won't be easy. Too often, public bodies run into "not in my neighborhood situations." Stevens Point Mayor Gary Wescott has already come out opposed to a 400-bed jail in the downtown area. The Open Meetings Law was created to make sure the public was aware of governmental dealings and to eliminate back-room politics. Committees have been publicly discussing a Huber Law facility and a new jail for at least three years now, and there doesn't seem to be an immediate need for the new facility. Supervisors won't pay for a new jail. Property taxpayers will have that responsibility. They deserve to have input into the decision of a new site, not something reached behind closed doors. A new millennium is approaching. Don't move Portage County back to a previous century with a closed-door decision on a public issue. Gene Kemmeter