How might the new jail in Ferndale be different from the current downtown Bellingham facility?

In addition to being a safe, humane, secure facility for those who must be detained, when completed, the facility on LaBounty Drive in Ferndale will also include a behavioral care center (BCC), where short-term behavioral health treatment can be administered as an alternative to people charged with a crime. The BCC is another component of a continuum of care for people whose behavioral health conditions may contribute to their involvement with the criminal legal system.

Mental Health Care Is The Answer

Collocating a behavioral health facility with the jail responds to a key finding identified by the Whatcom County Justice Project’s revised Implementation Plan (June 9, 2020) that, “...to create a safer, healthier community, Whatcom County needs to make significant investments in systems, services, and facilities.”

Rehabbing Reoffenders

“When increasing the capacity of services and filling gaps in the continuum of care, appropriate facilities to house those services are needed as well. This strategy focuses on capital projects and includes the largest of the Implementation Plan projects, a jail and behavioral health treatment center. These facilities are envisioned to have secure detention of those who are a danger to public safety in a facility that promotes health and rehabilitation, coordinated with a treatment center that offers a diversion option for eligible individuals who can benefit from inpatient behavioral health services.”

Specifically, the building of a new jail facility and BBC directly respond to Strategy III/Project 8 of the Justice Project Implementation plan.

Image (artist’s rendering): “The new Franklin County Jail has open-air doors, skylights, and an atrium as the sheriff’s office blended outdoor elements with an interior space meant to hold people awaiting court or serving short sentences. (Franklin County, Ohio Jail)