By Brandi Makuski

County officials on Wednesday are holding a public informational meeting on a proposal to construct a new county government building.

The county hopes to build a new three-story facility to replace the existing jail building and nearby courthouse, which are both in need of millions of dollars in repairs and upgrades. The new facility would house an updated 200-bed jail, a dedicated council chamber, courtrooms and various county offices.

The new building would be an addition to the existing County Annex building on Strongs Ave. at a cost of $78.5 million. The county has also placed the item on November’s ballot, asking voters whether or not they approve of the spending.

But the referendum will be a non-binding one, meaning the Portage Co. Board of Supervisors can move forward with the project if it chooses. Voters turned down two previous referenda on building a new facility for the county, and in Sept. the board approved pushing funding the project out until 2018.

The meeting will be held on Wed., Oct. 12 at 6:30 PM in the County Annex, 1462 Strongs Ave. in Conference Rooms 1 and 2.