Welcome to Weekly Connections! Here is your summary of key updates from the justice industry for the week of June 29.

Let's get started with project updates:

• The Lorain County Jail Advisory Board in Ohio has approved designs from DLZ Architecture for a new $143 million, 540-bed jail based on a podular supervision model.
• The Elmore County Commission in Alabama has approved a $69.9 million bid from FITE Building Company to construct a new 480-bed jail.
• Officials in Warrick County, Ind., held a ribbon-cutting ceremony last week at the new $54 million Warrick County Sheriff's Office and Security Center.
• Construction is underway on a new two-story, 52,000-square-foot federal courthouse in Medford, Ore., which is expected to finish by late 2027.
• The Lee County, Miss., Board of Supervisors has approved a $9.3 million agreement with Tindall Corporation to provide 31 prefabricated detention cells for the new Lee County Justice and Public Safety Center.

Moving on to legislation and funding:

• Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger announced new Virginia Department of Corrections reforms and created the Governor's Community Partnership Council on Corrections.
• The Tennessee Department of Correction is launching mobile community supervision offices to help probationers and parolees in rural areas meet requirements and access support services.

Next in people news:

• NELSON Worldwide has hired Julian Andrade as Vice President and Practice Delivery Leader of the company's Civic and Justice Practice.
• STV named Marcus Weidner as its first Chief Technology Officer to support the firm's digital and AI transformation.

Now for this week's construction reports:

• Transylvania County, N.C., is prequalifying contractors to build a new $40 million, two-story county courthouse, with bids due July 10.
• The Virginia Department of Corrections has issued an RFP for architectural and engineering firms to provide on-call project services, with bids due July 15.
• Construction Manager McCownGordon Construction is seeking subcontractors for the new $55 million Finney County Detention Center project in Kansas, with bids due July 27.

And finishing up with events:

• The Correctional Leaders Association's 2026 Western Region Meeting will take place in Cle Elum, Washington from July 13–16.
• The National Commission on Correctional Health Care will host its 2026 Correctional Mental Health Conference in Austin, Texas from July 18–20.
• The National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives will commemorate its 50th annual training conference in Dallas from July 24–28.

For more details or to access the links mentioned, check out our podcast show notes at correctionalnews.com/podcast.