DOC Signals It May Back Off Logan Prison Closure
The Logan Correctional Center in Lincoln in 2011. (Photo: State Journal-Register)
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Last week wasn’t a banner week for the Pritzker administration’s plan to close the Logan Correctional Center, a downstate women’s prison located near Lincoln, and move it to a newly constructed facility near Joliet.
Two public comment meetings in Joliet and Lincoln last week and skeptical lawmakers in a bipartisan oversight panel showed plenty of questions remaining for the Department of Correction’s plan.
Now, it appears, Department of Corrections may be beginning to walk back the prison plan.
In a statement, to the the Illinoize Monday, DOC claimed the prison plan introduced was a starting point for a discussion.
“The Department’s goal in announcing its intent to rebuild Stateville and Logan Correctional Centers was to present a starting point and create an open process in which feedback from all impacted stakeholders is considered – not to present a complete plan without discussing it with all involved,” the statement read. “The Department recognizes the importance of these discussions to help ensure the success of this initiative, which is why we’ve met with staff and individuals in custody at the impacted facilities, in addition to the unions, legislators, advocacy organizations, and educational partners. The Department is committed to transparency and will continue conversations to gather feedback from impacted stakeholders and collectively incorporate it into a better comprehensive plan moving forward. The Department will also review and consider the COGFA recommendations.”
Rep. Bill Hauter (R-Morton), who represents the Logan prison site, said the Department of Corrections got a “reality check” with overwhelming opposition to the plan at public hearings last week.
“I totally understand that there has to be a starting point and agree that there should be a new prison,” Hauter said. “Unfortunately, that starting point morphed into a premature decision that two new prisons and almost a billion dollars were going to the metro Chicago area.
Hauter believes the Lincoln hearing changed minds in DOC.
“Until the hearing, I don't think [the Department of Corrections] truly understood the impact losing the prison will have on our community and the central Illinois economy,” he said. “Our hope is that the large crowd and the passion shown will halt any momentum of a really terrible decision to move Logan to [Stateville].”
The Pritzker administration and Department of Corrections can still move forward with the closure, though, their timetable isn’t clear.