In recent decades, New York State has closed dozens of prisons, including many in the North Country, as Democratic lawmakers passed criminal justice reforms and the inmate population plummeted.
News broke last week that the state has been considering building a brand new prison that could house up to 3,000 incarcerated people. If built, it would be the largest correctional facility in New York.
Those plans sparked backlash from some Democratic and Republican lawmakers, and now the state appears to have walked back its intention to build a new prison.
According to the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS), the state withdrew its Request for Qualifications (RFQ) "to further refine the scope and strategic focus of this initiative," and said it will reissue an updated RFQ in the future.
A spokesperson for Governor Kathy Hochul said in a written statement that “the Governor’s top priority is ensuring the safety of everyone who lives and works in our state’s correctional facilities.
"While the State is not building a new correctional facility, we are taking proactive steps to best inform renovations or replacement projects that may be necessary as New York's prison infrastructure, some of which is more than 200 years old, continues to age. Following last year’s illegal work stoppage, Governor Hochul committed to ensuring that state prisons are safe and this administration will continue to explore all avenues to do so."
A spokesperson for Governor Kathy Hochul said in a written statement that “the Governor’s top priority is ensuring the safety of everyone who lives and works in our state’s correctional facilities.
"While the State is not building a new correctional facility, we are taking proactive steps to best inform renovations or replacement projects that may be necessary as New York's prison infrastructure, some of which is more than 200 years old, continues to age. Following last year’s illegal work stoppage, Governor Hochul committed to ensuring that state prisons are safe and this administration will continue to explore all avenues to do so."
The original RFQ was published earlier this summer for the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) “to examine the need, feasibility, and operational implications of a new state-of-the- art correctional facility, including all new buildings and site infrastructure at a location to be determined within the State of New York.”
According to a DOCCS spokesperson, the department was “in the early stages of exploring what a modern facility could look like, focusing on incorporating modern technology and spaces built specifically for rehabilitative and reintegrative programming.”
“This is strictly a conceptual exploration, and no decisions have been made,” DOCCS said in a statement last week. “Should any plans move forward, we will fully engage the Legislature, labor unions, and key stakeholders.”
The RFQ for the project estimated that a new prison could cost up to $750 million and would include “approximately 3,000 beds, multiple new housing and support buildings, security systems, and significant site and utility infrastructure improvements”
When news broke last week that the state was considering building a new prison, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle pushed back.
“The proposed state plan is completely and utterly tone deaf,” said Assemblyman Michael Cashman, a Democrat who represents Clinton and Franklin County as well as part of Essex County.
“We know that we don’t have enough staff to fill our current needs, and we have closed and standby-ready-status facilities throughout the state that could be reopened without wasting the projected money of this new facility,” said Cashman.
Earlier this year, DOCCS closed Bare Hill Correctional, one of three state prisons in Malone. Under Gov. Hochul, DOCCS has also closed state prisons in Ogdensburg and Moriah. There are also empty and abandoned prisons in Watertown, Chateaugay, Lyon Mountain, and Gabriels.
Senator Dan Stec, a Republican who represents Clinton, Essex, Franklin, and Warren counties, and parts of St. Lawrence and Washington counties, said in a statement he was shocked when he heard last week that the state was considering building a new prison while many of its former correctional facilities remain vacant.
“Many of these have been allowed to deteriorate into appalling, unsafe conditions,” Stec wrote. “Given this shoddy track record of ownership, the governor and state officials should address their culpability in allowing sites that were once crucial sources of jobs and economic revenue to become blights on their home communities.”
Both Stec and Cashman highlighted the state's prison staffing shortage and safety concerns among corrections officers as areas the Governor should focus on fixing before it builds a new prison.