HOUGHTON Houghton County has a new site for a potential jail.
Tuesday, the board approved purchasing the First Apostolic Lutheran Church property on Sharon Avenue for $1.1 million. The board discussed the purchase in closed session prior to the vote.
The terms of when Houghton County would be able to move onto the site still need to be finalized in the purchase agreement, Vice Chairman Tom Tikkanen said.
Board members and the public toured the church site last month prior to a board work session. The congregation plans to build a bigger church on Gundlach Road.
The 14,000-square-foot building would be planned to house the sheriff’s office, work camp, district court, and potentially offices such as the county clerk. A new county jail would be built on land behind the church, partially overlapping with the current parking lot.