Governor Sam Brownback signed legislation Friday that allows the Department of Corrections to sell a parcel of land by the Department of Corrections near the Hutchinson Correctional Facility to Reno County for the purpose of building a county jail.

County residents will be asked to approve a half cent sales tax increase to pay for the jail

the purchase includes about 10-acres on the northeast corner of the Blanchard and Severance, which is east of the Hutchinson Zoo in Carey Park, and south of the Hutchinson Animal Shelter. The land will be purchased at an appraised price according to Deming, and he thinks the county can get the land for anywhere from 30-to-50-thousand dollars.

If voters approve, then construction is expected to take 18-months or more to build.

The legislation also allows the purchase of the Saint Francis Boys’ Home in Ellsworth for conversion of the property into a corrections facility.