Santa Ana OKs Tunnel to County Jail From New City Unit : Justice: Some fear opening door for county inmates to be held in city cells. Supervisors take up issue today.

The City Council authorized an agreement with the county Monday to build a tunnel linking the county jail with the planned $107 million city jail.

The agreement calls for the city to pay for the tunnel, which would link the county Intake and Release Center with the new jail. The tunnel’s main purpose, according to the agreement, is to save costs and prevent escapes while moving Santa Ana inmates to the county facility. The County Board of Supervisors will take up the issue today.

A description of the tunnel project provided to supervisors by the county staff lists a “potential secondary use” of “housing of prisoners to relieve periodic overcrowding at either the city or county facility.”

But the possibility that the tunnel could make it easier for the county to house inmates in the city jail worries many Santa Ana residents.

“When it’s all said and done, this will be a county facility, as sure as God made green apples,” said resident Ron Heike. “The city can’t afford this thing, and they can’t afford to let it sit empty either.”

Under the agreement, the county’s responsibilities include granting the city access to county property to construct the tunnel and providing personnel to help monitor design and construction. The Sheriff’s Department will work with the city and control the tunnel doors on the county side.

Construction of the tunnel is expected to begin late this month, said Russ Davis, Santa Ana’s jail administrator.

City and county officials say that there have been no discussions about using the city jail to help alleviate overcrowding at the county facility, and that the topic was mentioned in background material for supervisors only because it is a possibility down the road.

“This was just me informing the board that secondary uses are possible. Just from experience, we know that there’s always the possibility of sharing services,” said Louis Scarpino, a senior analyst with the county office of facilities planning.

Davis said the city has had “no discussions with the county at all about leasing jail beds.”

In addition to the 900-foot tunnel, the project includes a 236,000-square-foot police administration building, a four-story jail for 420 inmates with a kitchen and laundry facility, and a parking garage. The $107-million bond is the biggest issue ever sold by the city for a single project, city officials said.