SCHUYLER - Two months after Herkimer County lawmakers approved a site in Schuyler for the new jail, Wednesday they met face to face with Town of Schuyler officials to take the first steps.

County officials were seeking permission to do a study on that piece of land in the Schuyler Business Park, to see if there is enough sewer and water to support a jail.

Currently 80,000 gallons are supplied to the business park. However only 57,000 are used, leaving an excess of 23,000.

"Maximum build out, when we looked at a little over two hundred beds, was 23,000 gallons a day, so we would be considerable lower than that," said Len Hendricks, Chairman of the Herkimer County Public Safety Committee.

The meeting represents the earliest stages possible for building a jail on the Schuyler Business Park site. However, it is a step forward.

The town board was only one, of very few municipalities to write the county and welcome a jail. And they say thus far there has been little opposition.

"Most of the opposition, once you explain to the people...it's not a prison for hard core criminals," said Kenneth Dodge, Town of Schuyler Supervisor. "They seem to be a little more receptive than they would otherwise."

County officials are glad to hear that, since the state has now given them a new deadline, which is only 4 months away, to have plans in place for a building.

"We have a September deadline," said Hendricks. "We sent bubble drawings in as you remember on the earlier. But were right on the September one now and they haven't changed that date."

The one suggestion Town Supervisor Kenneth Dodge made to county officials, was asking them to take into consideration heating the future, if built in Schuyler, with pellets.

The New England Wood Pellet Company is already in the business park, something dodge sees as the county helping out local businesses.