Arkansas Department of Corrections in North Little Rock on June 5, 2024. (Mary Hennigan/Arkansas Advocate)
A Mississippi County facility and the Phillips County Jail will provide additional expansion opportunities for the Arkansas Board of Corrections, following approval from board members at a special-called meeting Thursday afternoon.
At the request of Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders following passage of the Protect Arkansas Act, the Board of Corrections has been brainstorming ways to quickly expand prison infrastructure to take pressure off overcrowded county jails.
Officials also anticipate needing additional space because the Protect Act removes the possibility of parole for the most serious offenders.
Arkansas officials plan immediate bed expansions while they await new prison
Sanders announced plans for a 3,000-bed prison last March, but its development is still in the preliminary stages. Prison officials are currently working alongside Sanders to select an “owner’s representative,” who will provide design, engineering and construction advice for the new prison.
The new prison is expected to provide more than enough space for the approximately 2,000 state inmates currently housed in county facilities. A completion date isn’t expected for a few years, however, and officials are looking for immediate expansion options.
“Hopefully someday we won’t have [county inmate back-up],” said Benny Magness, chairman of the Board of Corrections. “The governor is beating the bushes out every day giving us information, her staff, where we might have some options of beds.”
On Thursday, board members approved the donation of the Mississippi County Work Release Center from county officials. Though the Department of Corrections has operated the facility for about 25 years, expansion opportunities were limited with a lease agreement in place.
“[Accepting the property] will not increase operation expenses for the Department and will allow us the opportunity to expand capacity,” Secretary Lindsay Wallace wrote in a letter to the governor’s staff.
A 50-bed expansion was the initial plan for the Mississippi County spot, but Corrections staff are working with an architect to double the new infrastructure.
Richard Cooper, who oversees the construction and maintenance division for the Department of Corrections, said the plans for 100 new beds should be finalized on Friday and ready for department leadership to review next week.
Board members also approved a 40-year lease to operate the Phillips County Jail. The cost of the lease is set at $1 per year.
The jail is expected to be used as a 90-day facility, with approximately 105 inmates coming in every three months. Twenty beds in the jail will be reserved for any county inmates that need to be held in the facility, Wallace said.
Wallace estimated the facility could be up and running in 60 days, though she said staffing the 34 positions at the location could cause delays. “Part of the battle should already be won” with existing staff who intend to transfer over, Wallace said.
The facility will cost approximately $3 million annually to operate, according to calculations from Chad Brown, the department’s chief financial officer.
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