SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO — The guaranteed maximum price (GMP) for the planned new men’s prison is about $825 million, South Dakota Department of Corrections (DOC) officials and representatives of two construction groups told state lawmakers Thursday.

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Vance McMillan, the vice president of JE Dunn Construction, said the GMP includes a $1,003 cost per square foot for construction. JE Dunn is the construction manager for the planned project.

The DOC presented an update on the planned men’s prison during Thursday’s legislative Joint Committee on Appropriations meeting. The prison would have capacity for 1,500 inmates and would be built between Harrisburg and Canton in Lincoln County.

The GMP is higher than the January estimate of more than $706 million from the state’s  Bureau of Financial and Management. The projected prison project will be one of the largest projects built in state history.

Republican Sen. Jim Bolin said only the dams on the Missouri River could be considered a bigger project in state history.

The prison would replace a 143-year-old facility in Sioux Falls.

The state has about $505 million in a prison project fund and when interest of about $61 million on that fund is included as well as other money, the state would need to provide about another $200 million to the new men’s prison, said the DOC’s financial officer Brittni Skipper

The GMP does not include furniture and related cost.

Wasko said DOC is working with the South Dakota Department of Transportation on improvements needed for two nearby roads. The cost of those improvements are not included in the GMP.

Committee members asked questions about how South Dakota’s plan compares to those in other states.

Republican Rep. John Mills said a planned men’s prison in Nebraska had an estimated cost of $350 million.

McMillan said Nebraska won’t be receiving bids until March. In the case of Nebraska, it’s comparing apples to oranges, because South Dakota is planning for an all maximum bed facility or all level 5.

“Their minimum is like a college dorm,” McMillan said of the Nebraska plan.

Also, Nebraska is planning for four inmates per cell while South Dakota is planning for two inmates per cell, McMillan said.

Wasko said the state does not have a need for minimum security space. The need is for maximum and medium security which is the reason for a level 5 facility.

She described the difference as medium security inmates as being able to keep a cell door open because they have more ability to leave throughout the day. But at night, they need to be in a secured cell.

The same design and security are needed for maximum and medium inmates, she said.

State engineer Stacy Watters said the state compared costs of prison projects in Georgia, Alabama, Maryland and Utah. South Dakota’s costs were in line.

Some research may show that a state’s per bed cost may be lower than South Dakota but that is because a state may be having four inmates in one cell which can lower the per bed cost, McMillan said.

A better and more accurate comparison is to use the per square foot cost, McMillan said.

McMillan and Dave Derry, the chief executive officer of Henry Carlson Construction, said the project is geared toward having South Dakota contractors work on parts of the project. Because it’s broken into multiple pieces, it will allow smaller contractors to be involved, Derry said.

During public comment, many of the comments focused on a DLR study from 2021 and questioned why it appears that study was abandoned. The other frequent comment was that the site in Lincoln County is not the best site for the proposed men’s prison.

Some mentioned that the Jameson Annex has an elevator and it could be built up at multiple levels.

The DLR study said “The most significant recommendation arrived at as a resolution to many of the system’s shortcomings, is a new 1,372-bed Multi Custody Correctional Facility” at a cost of $338,537,475.

Wasko said she would have loved to have conversations with those who spoke during the public comment before Thursday’s meeting, but she hasn’t been able. During meetings with state officials, Wasko said she was limited in how much she could share because of the lawsuit opponents had filed against the planned prison site.

Wasko said she had been advised on Thursday her responses could be limited because of litigation. The opponents of the men’s prison site lost a lawsuit in October but filed an appeal with the South Dakota State Supreme Court.

The DOC secretary did respond to several comments and questions raised during public comment.

“There is no elevator shaft in Jameson,” Wasko said. She checked again on Thursday.

And even if there was, “Quite frankly, I don’t like putting inmates an an elevator,” that is a security risk, Wasko said.

Also, one additional upper level could be added at Jameson but it would only be space for a a couple hundred inmates and doesn’t solve her 1,200 bed problem, Wasko said.

The total cost of $825 million does not include the road improvements, Wasko said again, but the DOC has been working with the South Dakota Department of Transportation. The road improvements are part of the SDDOT road plan, she said.