The Davidson County Sheriff’s Office in Tenneessee is seeking design and construction contractors to build a new $410 million replacement jail facility in Nashville. | Photo Credit: Davidson County Sheriff’s Office
What You Need to Know
- The Davidson County, Tenn., Sheriff’s Office has issued a request for qualifications seeking a contractor to demolish two existing jails and build a new detention facility on the same site.
- The plan calls for an approximately 1,867-bed, 500,806-square-foot facility with a maximum guaranteed price target of $410 million, according to the request.
- Metro Nashville Council approval will be required for future funding beyond initial design and planning dollars already included in the city’s capital spending plan.
- Sheriff Daron Hall cites overcrowding, the closure of the former Metro Detention Facility and aging infrastructure as drivers; public defense leadership and the mayor’s office have raised questions about cost and priorities.
- Bids are due April 16, and the project is expected to take about 36 months once a contractor is selected, the sheriff said.
NASHVILLE – The Davidson County Sheriff’s Office has begun early procurement steps for a major jail replacement project, seeking a contractor to demolish two existing facilities on a campus on Harding Place and construct a new detention center on the same site.
According to the sheriff’s office’s request for qualifications (RFQ), the project would demolish two facilities at 5113 Harding Place: the 768-bed Correctional Development Center – Male and the former Metro Detention Facility, which once held 1,200 people and has been closed since 2020. The RFQ envisions an approximately 1,867-bed detention facility spanning about 500,806 square feet on the same site, with a maximum guaranteed price target of $410 million.
Paying for the project will depend on future Metro Nashville Council approval. Velvet Hunter, assistant director of Metro General Services’ administration division, said $14 million in initial funding was approved in the fall 2026 capital spending plan to begin planning and design, with additional funding requests expected to complete construction, according to reporting from The Tennesseean…