On Tuesday, Oct. 29, the Board of County Commissioners voted 2-1 to name the county’s new alternative sentencing facility after former Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle.
The minimum-security facility is designed to hold about 250 people in diversion or work-release programs, as well as those transitioning from incarceration. Adjacent to the Boulder County Jail, the facility broke ground last year and will offer substance use and behavioral health treatment. Funded by a 2018 voter-approved sales tax and championed by Pelle and many others, the project aims to create safer conditions and provide a cost-effective alternative to incarcerating people charged with low-level offenses. Funding to open and operate the facility depends on the ongoing county budget process for 2025.
The vote had been up in the air because Pelle is still living. Commissioner Ashley Stolzmann noted that the commissioners recently introduced guidance discouraging naming buildings after people. However, this policy change came after the proposal to honor Pelle was submitted. Stolzmann cast the deciding vote, joining Commissioner Claire Levy in favor. Commissioner Marta Loachamin voted against it, advocating for a name that would honor Indigenous communities instead.