County staff said today that around 20 companies have expressed interest in bidding on the project. A final decision on the bids will be made at the July 30 Board of Supervisors meetings. Hillcrest, a 130-bed facility built in 1947, suffers from overcrowding, a design that creates security problems and chronic mold.

The proposed new campus is expected to include a 180-bed detention center and a 30-bed camp for troubled girls, as well as an unlocked facility for youth with substance abuse and mental health problems, the juvenile courts and probation department, a school and a facility for child welfare cases. County officials hope the additional treatment and educational services will help reduce incarceration rates and recidivism.

The vote at this morning's board meeting in Redwood City came after informal assurances from the Board of Corrections that the county will receive more than $21 million in state funding toward the project, which county staff said today could cost nearly $100 million altogether. Other state and federal funding sources are also being pursued, and a bond measure is under consideration.