ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Six correctional facilities in upstate New York were closing Thursday as the number of inmates drops across the state prison system.
The closings announced in November were expected to save $142 million.
The facilities scheduled to close at the end of the business day were: Ogdensburg Correctional Facility, Moriah Shock Incarceration Correctional Facility, Willard Drug Treatment Campus, Southport Correctional Facility, Downstate Correctional Facility and Rochester Correctional Facility.
More than 1,700 people worked at facilities and there were more than 1,400 inmates.
The state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision said inmates were transferred to other facilities and that officials worked to find jobs for employees at other facilities or other state agencies. The department said some workers declined new positions, but did not immediately say how many.
The governor was authorized by the Legislature last year to close state prisons amid a long-term drop in inmates. There are currently 30,580 inmates in state correctional facilities, down from a system-wide high of 72,773 in 1999.
Prison operators said they would begin decommissioning the facilities in preparation for potential reuse.
Is Wallkill Correctional Facility being closed down
Governor said that she will release inmates Upstate if they are working or attending programs to be home with their loved one no changes has been made i don’t understand these Governor Mayors and presents they say they’re going to do some and they don’t do it if you can’t do WHAT you say you’re going to do then step down let somebody better like Barack Obama or his wife get in the hot seat at least Barack Obama stuck to his word and released inmates on Rikers Island in upstate I don’t understand why these other people coming into offices and don’t want to do their job if you want to do something about something stop the spam email from coming to people emails about how they winning and sending that information and asking them dumb stuff which it don’t make no sense this is the reason why I do not vote and I never will because ain’t nothing changed the only person I see making changes is God God God is the man God is the president governor and mayor God has the power to everything and that’s the man I vote for God he’s the only one that’s looking out for our peoples but until then you will never get a vote for me also ACCESS A RIDE deny millions of people that has disability and disabled and I don’t think that’s right maybe the governor should look into that PS a Seth arrived denied me three times they never gave me my paperwork that took my information and they called me and told me I was denied I asked him for my paperwork back they refused and said they don’t do that they just sent me another application told me to appeal it but I’m not doing that so maybe the governor president and mayor should look into that and help us people try to get our ACCESS A RIDE back because I’m quite sure that the CEO or the manager of ACCESS A RIDE don’t know what’s going on under they 👃