The Freeborn County Board of Commissioners is set to consider recommending bids and starting to develop contracts with companies Tuesday in connection with approximately $1.6 million in planned upgrades at Freeborn County’s government and detention center.

Freeborn County Administrator Tom Jensen said four contractors are being recommended to move along in the process, including STANLEY Security for jail and intercom upgrades, VTI Security for video and access control work, Albert Lea Electric Co. for cabling and People’s Electric for project management.

The firm Elert & Associates has worked with the county during the process, and requests for project proposals went out in December. The four companies were selected from 23 contractors.

“It’s up to the board if they wish to accept the recommendations of Elert & Associates,” Jensen said.

He said the government center’s security system has reached the end of its life. The county cannot obtain replacement parts for the security system and it is no longer supported.

The board approved moving forward with upgrading the security system in March 2017. Final contracts are expected to come before the board in about one month.

Jensen said the county needs to upgrade the security system.

“We don’t have a choice,” he said. “If you don’t have security in your jail, if you don’t have security in the courthouse, you’re just opening yourself up to all sorts of incidents back and forth. Courthouse security has been on the front burner for many, many years.”