Commit a serious crime in Johns Creek and your friends are going to have to drive farther now to visit you in jail.
The Johns Creek City Council has struck a deal with the city of Pelham in south Georgia to house its long-term prisoners.
Johns Creek becomes one of a growing number of counties and cities, including Fulton, Gwinnett and Sandy Springs, contracting with Pelham, a city of about 4,000, 35 miles south of Albany.
The move could save Johns Creek thousands of dollars. The city previously had a contract with Irwin County, just south of Macon, which charges $45 a day per inmate. Under the new agreement, Pelham will charge $35 a day per inmate.
"That could be significant if you're talking about a person with a six-month sentence," Johns Creek City Manager John Kachmar said. "That's about $1,800 less in costs."
Johns Creek Municipal Court reported the city has anywhere from zero to five long-term prisoners at any one time.
Documents also show Johns Creek was not satisfied with the transportation Irwin County had been providing, citing delays in transferring inmates.
Pelham is happy for the business. It has a modern 354-bed facility, built 15 years ago and recently renovated with an addition.
"It does create jobs for us," Pelham Police Chief Nealie McCormick said. "And one thing we're short of down in this area is jobs."
The jail employs about 58 and serves as a long-term detention facility for about half a dozen municipalities, including Bainbridge. The meals, prepared in the jail's own kitchen, meet federal standards of 2,600 to 2,800 calories a day.
"Of course, we're a municipality and not a private enterprise, so we're able to do it somewhat cheaper," McCormick said. "We don't have stockholders that have to be paid dividends. If we can make the bottom line meet at the end of the year, we're fine."
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