The Real Cost of Prisons Weblog

"The selectboard really needs to be kept in the loop about this," Farrell said Thursday. "We need to know which direction the state is heading in this. But we haven't heard from them at all."

As lawmakers continue working on a plan to cut prison costs by restructuring several facilities in Waterbury, Windsor and St. Albans (a bill doing so has passed the Vermont Senate and is now in the House), local leaders are concerned that there has been a lack of communication.

Rep. Donna Sweeney, D-Windsor, said she began hearing concerns this week from representatives of her town over the corrections plan. Part of the breakdown in communication may be because the changes are being pushed by the Legislature and many details will still be in flux until it finally passes both chambers and is signed into law, she explained.

"I think Corrections are caught between a rock and a hard place," Sweeney said. "But once we are all on the same page, it will get better. I think the level of communication between the state and the towns on this will soon improve."

That's the assessment given Thursday by Corrections Commissioner Robert Hofmann. Because the plans are still being worked on and can change greatly from proposal to passage, he said he has held off from feeding the towns specific details that could end up being different one day later.

He added that the department has been in contact with the towns involved, including reaching out to law enforcement officials in Windsor.

"The challenge that I have right now is that the Senate has one opinion of how this should work, but the House could easily come to another opinion," Hofmann said. "I try to be consistent and everything is in flux right now."

The most severe change under the reorganization plan would be the closing of the Dale Correctional Facility in Waterbury. Under the plan approved by the Senate, the female inmates there would be moved to the St. Albans prison, which would be renovated into a women's-only facility.

Waterbury Town Manager William Shepeluk said there has been some communication between the state and his office recently, but said he has several outstanding concerns about the deal, which could see Dale closed as early as January 2009.

Some of his concerns center on the financial impact to the town. He said the state pays the town $24,000 annually for the prison and mental health beds there, which could cause some money headaches once the prison beds are reduced from the equation.

He's also worried what will happen to the families of the more than 40 workers at Dale, many of whom live in the Waterbury area, once the facility is closed.

But Shepeluk said his main concern is what to do with the prisoners arrested by local police. Waterbury Police have used Dale to hold arrested individuals overnight until their arraignment, but the closing of the facility means longer trips for local cops to drop off the suspects.

"We would probably have to bring them to South Burlington or St. Johnsbury, so that is a much longer trip," he said. "And there are usually two officers who transport people, so that is two less officers out there on the road."

City officials in St. Albans have similar concerns. Mayor Martin Manahan said several officials traveled to Montpelier earlier this week to vent their frustration at the lack of communication between the municipality and the state.

"We had to reach out," he said.

St. Albans also uses the prison to hold suspects overnight before arraignment. If that facility is transitioned to a women's facility, local police will have to drive them to Chittenden County ­ taking two more officers off the streets and requiring the city to call in two more to fill those slots as the others travel.

"We're reaching out to our delegation in Montpelier," Manahan said. "From what I understand this proposal is a done deal, but it is very frustrating to see the state pass these costs over to the taxpayers."

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