To open the new Cole County Jail, Sheriff Greg White led those gathered at the grand opening ceremonies in a brief prayer.
"Lord, I ask that you make this a place that changes people's hearts," he said.
The 180-bed facility at the corner of East High and Adams streets was opened for the public to tour Friday morning.
"We are blessed for the trust you have placed in us with this place," White told the crowd.
On a day of thanking people for the time and work they provided to make the jail a reality, Presiding Commissioner Marc Ellinger acknowledged members of the Cole County Advisory Committee who met throughout 2006 to come up with ideas on what needed to be put into a new jail.