The Madison Street Jail will soon be no more with demolition underway

PHOENIX — The old Madison Street Jail in Downtown Phoenix has been empty for over a decade.

But Wednesday afternoon, elected officials using robots got to demolish parts of the jail to repurpose it for new Maricopa County Attorney’s offices.

“Just a couple of points to make first; I can deny that my office will be going into an existing cell,” said Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery.

The old Madison Street jail was built in 1985, and no longer complied with corrections standards. A replacement facility is already in use right next door.

“As a county that kind of fiscal responsibility to using existing facilities, and wanting to maximize the taxpayer’s value is fantastic,” he said.

Denny Barney, Chairman of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors said the project is expected to cost about $60-65 million to remodel.

“It’s going to allow us to accommodate the county attorney in what’s currently five or six different locations,” Barney said.

Crews have already begun cleaning and demolishing the inside, and once remodeled, the new County Attorney’s Office will have more than 250 thousand square feet of finished space with secure access to the court facilities next door.

The new facility is expected to be complete by 2020.

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