MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Shelby County leaders got a look Wednesday at a new plan to move the county’s jails and courts from 201 Poplar and Shelby Farms to a new, modern facility in North Memphis.

The proposed 71-acre site, formerly home to an old Firestone plant that closed in the 1980s, would be leased by the county with an option to purchase.

A new detention facility with beds for 3,000 male and female inmates, plus courts and sheriff’s office facilities, would be built on the site. The total estimated cost for the project is $1.26 billion.

The plan is spearheaded by a public-private partnership that includes Kemp Conrad, a commercial real estate professional and former Memphis city councilman.

“We believe there’s a unique opportunity right now, not only to remedy the current, what I would call deplorable conditions at 201 Poplar, just outside the window here, but also create a new holistic justice center for this community,” said Conrad.

Sheriff Floyd Bonner and other county leaders have long argued that the county’s main Criminal Justice Center at 201 Poplar is beyond repair and unsafe for both employees and inmates, but the price tag for a replacement has been a hurdle.

Conrad called the conditions at 201 Poplar building a “catastrophe,” and presented the new facility as a better alternative for the county and for the people inside the jail.

“People will actually have a chance of coming out of 201 better than they go in, which is not the case right now because of the condition of that facility,” Conrad said.

► SHELBY COUNTY JUSTICE CENTER PLAN

Conrad said he hoped the jail development would spur transformation in the New Chicago neighborhood of North Memphis, as lawyers and other offices moved closer to the new facility, which could also bring restaurants, residential, and retail development.

It would also free up 10 acres in the heart of downtown Memphis, near the convention center and St. Jude, as well as 100 acres in Shelby Farms, for redevelopment.

“By supporting this, you catalyze three opportunities — one in New Chicago, one in downtown Memphis, one in Shelby Farms,” Conrad told commissioners.

The group is asking the county for $350,000 initially for a master plan that will map out three phases.

Phase 1 would consolidate the 201 Poplar facilities and juvenile court, and detention center into a new facility. Phase 2 would relocate civil courts. Phase 3 would relocate the Penal Farm facilities to Shelby Farms.

If the project moves forward, Conrad said the master plan could be done in six months and the facility could be built in 36 months.

The new facility would continue to be operated by the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, not a private correctional operator.

Commissioner Henri Brooks said she had an open mind about the proposal, but was concerned about the speed at which the project was moving. She was also strongly opposed to moving a juvenile detention center near an adult population.

Developer Al Dotson told county leaders that they had the final determination on which facilities would be included in the new site.

Commissioner Amber Mills called the new Shelby County jail a top priority, but lamented that a proposed sales tax referendum that would have funded construction was off the table.

“I think this is a number one priority for Shelby County. It is needed because if we don’t build a jail, we’re going to be told to build a jail,” Mills said.

The sheriff’s office said bookings at 201 Poplar have reached “unprecedented” numbers as Memphis Police, U.S. Marshals, Tennessee Highway Patrol, and others bring more people than ever to the Jail.

For example, the SCSO reported that 2,272 men were booked into the jail in June 2025, compared to 1,570 in June 2021. Assessment report reveals deteriorating conditions at 201 Poplar

This comes as the county struggles to make repairs to 201 Poplar’s doors, plumbing, elevators, and more, and the sheriff advocates for a new jail. Housing units were being closed on a rolling basis as repairs were made.

The proposal drew several comments, including New Chicago advocate Carnita Atwater, who said the team leaders had not reached out to her. General Sessions Court Clerk Tami Sawyer, whose office would be affected, said she’d only received the plan the day before from a community member.

“The courts have not been engaged in this matter, and this involves relocating our operations,” Sawyer said.

Conrad apologized and said his group had fallen short on communicating with the community.

There are also concerns from some, like Ethel Perry, who have called the area home for decades. This community could soon become bustling with inmates.

“Property go down and crime go up,” Perry said. “They keep saying North Memphis is bad, but we are okay.”

Perry has a dozen family members living along this same stretch of road, a few yards from where the jail would sit. She says the plan doesn’t sit well with her, as this has been her lifelong home.

“We have two schools, this is a community, we have been over here over for 60 years. No, we don’t want that at all,” Perry said. “We need that not to come.”

There is a lot the commissioners are still reviewing. At the top of the list is the consideration of other areas to possibly build a new detention center.