Committee continues to struggle with options for defunct prison

State Rep. Alice Emmons, D-Windsor 3-2, said Monday that the House Committee on Corrections and Institutions is “struggling” with what to do with the now-defunct Windsor correctional facility, which the state closed Oct. 31 to reduce budget costs.


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Committee continues to struggle with options for defunct prison | February 27, 2018 By PATRICK ADRIAN padrian@eagletimes.com SPRINGFIELD, Vt. – While the future for the Windsor Correctional Center remains unknown, it appears poorly suited for a mental health or transitional housing program, said the committee chair studying the matter. State Rep. Alice Emmons, D-Windsor 3-2, said Monday that the House Committee on Corrections and Institutions is “struggling” with what to do with the now-defunct Windsor correctional facility, which the state closed Oct. 31 to reduce budget costs. Last year, the committee instructed the Vermont Department of Corrections to create a plan to convert the prison into a transitional housing program for Vermont inmates re-entering the community, with an estimated capacity of 100 residents. The request was made to address a backlog of Vermont inmates awaiting re-entry into society. The department reported in November that 11 percent of inmates — roughly 145 men and 9 women each month — are held past their minimal sentence because of a lack of housing. In the plan sent to legislators, Corrections Commissioner Lisa Menard stated that converting the prison into transitional housing would be costly and challenging. “The main building which housed the offenders, is totally inappropriate for any of the uses that we need,” Emmons told an audience in Springfield. “So, if we were to use that property, we would have to tear down that building and rebuild.” Several of the outbuildings would also need to be razed, Emmons said, due to deterioration from many years of non-use. According to the plan, $1.3 million in facility renovations would be needed to comply with safety and space requirements, compared to $1.4 million if the building was to be demolished. Another obstacle is the lack of specialized staff to run a psychiatric or transitional program. Having access to that staff is important when determining location for a mental health facility, Emmons said. “We can build a facility but if we can’t hire the staff to run it, we haven’t achieved anything,” she said, “So Windsor is [also] an issue when determining what to do with that state building.” Windsor is one of several facilities being studied as the committee tries to determine options for all residents needing beds in the state’s mental health and correctional system, said Emmons. Currently, the committee also needs a facility to house a 16-bed mental health program, though Human Services SecretaryAl Gobetelle said in November that the Windsor prison was not properly designed for a psychiatric care building. Windsor residents have expressed opposition to purposing the prison for another correctional program. The town has proposed to the state that the property be purposed toward something economically or culturally beneficial to the area, such as an agricultural campus. Another option includes demolishing the buildings in order to make the property more appealing to a prospective buyer.