Demolition of the former Woodbury County Jail in downtown Sioux City is continuing, towards a completion anticipated within two months.
Woodbury County Board of Supervisors Chairman Mark Nelson on Wednesday told Siouxland Public Media News that the demolition activities began on January 13.
Shortly before that, the county board awarded the demolition contract to Lieber Construction of North Sioux City, after considering 14 bids.
Lieber bid at $518,418, for the project that had been estimated to cost $1.1 million.
Demolition of the former county jail is expected to be completed by March 2026. That jail was built on Seventh Street in 1987. After years of mechanical and other problems that could cost additional millions of dollars, they pursued building a new jail on the city’s northeast edge.
The original cost passed in a 2020 bond issue of $54 million after many delays ballooned to $69 million by the opening in September 2024.
