Prison closures could cause hundreds of jobs to leave the Central
Illinois
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[May 11, 2024]
By Catrina Petersen | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – “Save Logan Correctional Center” signs are popping
up on front lawns in Lincoln as legislators raise concerns about a plan
to close and demolish the facility in Logan County.
The Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability held a
hearing in Springfield Friday. The topic that the bipartisan group of
state legislators reviewed is the proposed closures of Stateville
Correctional Center in Crest Hill and Logan Correctional Center in
Lincoln.
Illinois Department of Corrections Acting Director Latoya Hughes said
the plan is to close Logan Correctional Center in Lincoln and relocate
it in Crest Hill, where two modern facilities will be erected. About 500
employees in Lincoln would have to transfer.
“The department estimates that if staffing patterns stay consistent with
current trends, there will be approximately 850 positions available in
our other department facilities within a 90 mile radius of Logan
Correctional Center,” said Hughes.
COGFA member state Sen. Sally Turner, R-Beason, questioned whether IDOC
and the Illinois Capital Development Board had done their due diligence
in balancing the best options. She suggested building the new facility
closer to Lincoln or just rehabilitating the Logan Correctional Center.
IDOC officials said the reason they want to move Logan Correctional
Center out of Lincoln is because the Will County and Cook County areas
have more rehabilitation programs available for inmates and that will
ultimately improve the recidivism rate.
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“The folks that work at Logan Correctional Center, they have jobs and
homes and we can’t expect them to drive 70 miles at $4 a gallon for gas
to go and work somewhere else,” said Turner.
Along with demolishing Logan Correctional Center, IDOC plans to demolish
Stateville Correctional Center and rebuild a new, modern prison in that
same area. The employees at Stateville will have to transfer,
temporarily, while CDB plans and executes the construction of the new
facility. Hughes said most Stateville employees will be offered jobs at
the Northern Reception and Classification Center, which sits on the same
property as the current Stateville prison.
“In addition to the Northern Reception and Classification Center, there
are three correctional facilities within 65 miles of the Stateville
Correctional Center. The department estimates about 1,000 IDOC positions
should be available within 65 miles of the Stateville Correctional
Center,” said Hughes.
State Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer, R-Murrayville, pointed out it’s likely the
CDB won’t follow through on the demolition of Logan Correctional Center,
despite the department confirming that their funding request includes
the demolition.
“They’ve got the Lincoln Development Center that was closed and it is
still sitting there and the state has done nothing with it,” said
Davidsmeyer. “As we are looking at this [rebuild and demolition project]
we’re still neglecting the things we have been neglecting for decades
and telling these communities we won’t do that to them. While we’re
looking at big projects like this, maybe the state should look at
cleaning up other areas as well.”
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![](../images/051124PIX/news_b3.jpg)
A screengrab of Google Street View for Logan Correctional Center in
Lincoln, Illinois. Image Capture: Jul. 2019 ©Google 2024
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2024/May/11/images/ads/current/christianchildcare_lda_042224.png)
Gov. J.B. Pritzker's proposed budget for the fiscal year beginning July
1 includes $900 million to demolish and rebuild the correctional centers
and the administration estimates the construction costs at $805 million
to $935 million.
American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Council 31
Deputy Director Mike Newman argued IDOC’s proposal to close both prisons
is in violation of the State Facilities Closure Act.
“The department simply states that the closure will not significantly
disrupt programming [at Stateville],” said Newman. “But the proposal
provides no additional explanation on how it will ensure the
incarcerated individuals at Stateville will have access to the same
educational and vocational opportunities that are available now.”
According to the IDOC’s website, Stateville Correctional Center offers
more classes and programming than any other facility in Illinois.
“The department is simply asking the commission for pre-approval well in
advance of whenever the department comes up with an actual plan sometime
within the next five years. The department's so-called recommendation
states that it is only considering moving Logan Correctional Center from
its current location and that no final decision has been made,” said
Newman. “What exactly is the commission being asked to approve?”
Newman told COGFA that Logan Correctional Center has about 500 employees
who need to transfer, and the department suggested employees could go to
Decatur Correctional Center or Lincoln Correctional Center, but there
are only 54 job vacancies between both of those facilities.
Every indicator shows that the state’s prisons are becoming increasingly
more dangerous for employees and the incarcerated, Newman said, and that
relocating individuals in custody will only exacerbate the problems
within the state’s prisons.
Newman also said there’s a problem transferring inmates to Decatur
because that is a minimum-security, dormitory-style facility and most of
the medium-security females at Logan cannot be safely transferred there.
As far as the economic impact to Lincoln if Logan Correctional Center is
relocated to Stateville, Newman said there are hundreds of indirect jobs
that will be lost.
COGFA, which can only make recommendations about such plans, is
scheduling additional meetings about the proposed closures.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2024/May/11/images/ads/current/ldn_lda_BUSDIRCOVER_2024.png) |