Atlanta City Council on Oct. 5 postponed action for two weeks on a proposed sale of the Atlanta City Detention Center to Fulton County, extending debate over the facility’s future and the county’s plans to use it as additional jail space. Fulton County has agreed to pay the city $68 million for the detention center. The county says the facility is needed because of overcrowding at its Rice Street jail. Council members raised concerns about the cost of necessary upgrades, the future of city detention-center employees and how Atlanta would use the sale proceeds. A letter from city Chief Financial Officer Muhamed Ralla said the $68 million could go into the city’s fund balance or pay for one-time, related projects. The city expects to keep a smaller corrections unit to handle municipal offenses. Ralla estimated that the city’s annual operating costs for the retained staff would fall from the detention center’s current roughly $30 million budget to between $10 million and $12 million. Fulton County has estimated that the center needs about $75 million in upgrades. Council member Jason Winston said members need more information about the costs of maintaining a city presence in the building before advancing the sale. “We deserve the right to continue to dive into those numbers before moving this legislation forward,” he said. Council member Wayne Martin, who moved to hold the matter in committee, also called for discussion of whether sale proceeds could support mental-health services and help keep people out of jail. He said that approach could address community concerns about how people in custody are treated. Public commenters raised questions about both staffing and the county’s need for more beds. Michael Collins, speaking on behalf of Play Fair ATL, said the Professional Association of City Employees union opposes the sale and is concerned there is no plan for detention-center employees. Collins said workers do not want to move to county employment, particularly at Rice Street, which he described as having significant staffing problems. Devin Franklin, senior counsel at the Southern Center for Human Rights, said Fulton County has access to detention facilities with unused capacity. He estimated that 452 beds in county facilities in Union City, Marietta and Atlanta are not in use, largely because of staffing shortages. Franklin questioned how the county would staff additional beds if it cannot staff the beds it already controls. The council’s two-week pause gives members more time to examine the sale’s financial and operational details. The proposal would transfer a city facility to county control while leaving Atlanta responsible for a smaller municipal corrections operation; the council has not yet made a final decision.