Articles & News

March 12, 2008

City cool to prison proposal

By SUNITA VIJAYAN, The Salinas Californian

Despite objections from Soledad leaders, a new prisoner facility could soon be built near the city, already home to two state prisons. On Wednesday night, the Soledad City Council heard a presentation from Monterey County Sheriff Mike Kanalakis on bringing a prisoner re-entry facility to the area.

The re-entry facility would host prisoners with six months to a year remaining on their sentences who are preparing to return to society. Inmates would take part in programs including drug-and-alcohol treatments and mental health and job or vocational training.

ADVERTISEMENT

Kanalakis wants the facility built because it also would bring a separate state grant the county could use to overhaul its crowded jail on Natividad Road in Salinas. The Soledad project would be a joint venture with the county's custody operations bureau and the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

On Friday, the sheriff said his office has identified two possible sites off Highway 101 for the facility - one not far from the existing Soledad and Salinas Valley state prisons, the other near Camphora Gloria Road, close to the city limits.

Soledad Mayor Richard Ortiz said Kanalakis' presentation didn't receive "a good review."

"How does the city feel about it?" he said. "It doesn't feel that great about developing that prison."

While Ortiz said the city would have welcomed a facility on the county-owned land that already houses two prisons, the Camphora Gloria Road site is "just a stone's throw from the city of Soledad." It's also within Soledad's sphere of influence, an area slated for future growth in the city's general plan.

Both sites would place the re-entry facility too close to Soledad residents, he said, potentially endangering them.

"I think there was interest, but also concerns," Kanalakis said. "I tried to address those concerns as best as

I could, but I got a sense that they felt that they might be looked at like a dumping ground."

Kanalakis said Soledad would benefit from the construction of a secure re-entry facility in its midst. He said it would bring local jobs and revenue to the city, and help inmates prepare to rejoin society.

Moreover, Kanalakis said the facility would house inmates who are Monterey County residents, and it would be built according to state prison-system building codes.
$80 million at stake

But Ortiz said the city has many unanswered questions for the county to address, including what security level of inmates the facility will house, the impact on traffic and whether Soledad would have a share of the $80 million the county hopes to obtain by building the re-entry facility.

Ortiz said the county has to negotiate with the owners of any site they consider. And according to the mayor, the owner of both sites Kanalakis proposed Wednesday won't sell the land unless Soledad city officials support the re-entry facility plans.

County supervisors also have said that building the facility near Soledad would need the city's backing.
Supervisor concerned

"I appreciate (supervisors) for having that consideration, because I don't think it'll be in their favor if we went against the project," Ortiz said. "It wouldn't be good for relations."

Should plans to build the facility move forward without Soledad's support, the city will appeal to the county, he said. If that fails, a lawsuit may follow. Supervisor Simón Salinas, whose district covers the Soledad area, said he understands Soledad city leaders' concerns regarding the facility's proximity to town. "Why have a re-entry right off the freeway?" said Salinas, referring to the site near Camphora Gloria Road. "It's not a good image when entering the city of Soledad."

Conceding it's "not an easy facility to site," he said, more discussions are needed to help identify the best location for the facility - not only between the Sheriff's Office and supervisors, but also with residents living near the prison, such as in labor camps.
Grant key for jail

On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors is scheduled to decide whether to authorize the Sheriff's Office to submit an application to the state for a re-entry facility construction grant. The deadline for the application is March 18, Kanalakis said, and does not have to feature a specific site.

While the county can build the facility on existing land beside the jail on Natividad Road in Salinas, Kanalakis said, it's not a feasible choice, because it would impede the jail's expansion. Right now, Kanalakis said, the conditions of the jail facilities are unsatisfactory, and the county has plans for a $130 million, 445-bed jail expansion project. The $80 million grant tied to the re-entry facility would provide a significant boost for that project, he said.
More locations on tap

"I'm still hopeful that with enough time and education, city leaders will appreciate the concept and need for this facility," Kanalakis said. "We're doing our best, but there's too much money at stake here for county improvements to the existing jail for us not to apply."

Besides the two areas proposed Wednesday, Kanalakis said, the Sheriff's Office is considering a number of other locations just north of Soledad, such as an area just outside the city limits on San Vicente Road.

Contact Sunita Vijayan
at svijayan@thecalifornian.com.