LONG BEACH — A contract signed off on by city councilors earlier this month has formally cleared the way for the Long Beach Police Department to board prisoners in the county jail.

The Long Beach City Council on April 7 unanimously voted to authorize Mayor Sue Svendsen to enter into agreement with Pacific County for jail services at its South Bend facility through the end of 2026. It’s a development that LBPD Chief Flint Wright believes could put a dent in criminal activity in the area.

“Being able to actually put people in jail who need to be there without begging and pleading is going to be a new experience for the department,” Wright stated in his monthly report.

Under the terms of the contract, which county commissioners had already signed off on, the city will pay a booking fee of $50 each time one of its prisoners is booked into the jail, as well as $85 per day in 2025 and $90 per day in 2026. However, the city will be off the hook financially if the Pacific County Prosecutor’s Office brings felony charges against any of its prisoners.

Three beds at the jail will be dedicated for prisoners brought to the jail by LBPD, Wright noted.

“It’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever experienced in my career,” he told councilors.

The terms of the contract are the same as they previously were, but Long Beach City Administrator David Glasson said the biggest difference is that there is now a jail who is willing and able to take prisoners from the police department.

Councilor Mike Perez, noting that there are some current inmates who have been in the county jail for close to a year, questioned what would happen if a prisoner remained in the jail for such an extended period of time that it was costing the city thousands of dollars. Wright assured that those prisoners are being held on felony charges in most such cases, which the city would not be liable for.

“It’s never happened, but I could see someone getting 30 days in the county jail on a misdemeanor charge. It could happen — it’s never happened in my time here, but it could,” said Wright. “I’d love to have that happen a couple of times — there are some people who need to sit there for a while.”

The city sets aside funding in its budget each year to cover boarding costs at the jail, which Glasson said LBPD hasn’t come close to exceeding over the past 20 years.