Plans are moving forward to close two youth correctional facilities in Wisconsin and replace them with a new facility that will be built in Milwaukee. On Tuesday, Gov. Tony Evers announced a new juvenile prison is pegged to be built on Milwaukee’s northwest side at 7930 W. Clinton Ave.
The Milwaukee Common Council is expected to hold a special meeting to review the project on Friday.
In 2017, the state Legislature agreed to close Lincoln Hills School for Boys and Copper Lake School for Girls – both in Irma – after a criminal investigation validated reports of abuse and unsafe working conditions, which cost the state more than $25 million in legal fees and settlements.
While improvements have been made at both facilities, Evers said creating a new facility in Milwaukee has been a long-term goal of his administration.
"There’s no doubt we’ve made tremendous improvements at our state’s current facilities, but the goal for me and my administration since day one has been to close Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake, and to get our kids closer to home as soon as we safely and responsibly could," said Evers in a statement.
Although the Common Council is not scheduled to meet in regular session until September, it will hold a special meeting Friday to vote on the proposed site to move forward as required by state law. The cost to purchase land and build the new facility is $41.8 million, which has been previously budgeted for in 2018 when Evers signed a bipartisan bill to construct a replacement facility.
If the site is approved by the Council on Friday, the plan isn’t set in stone as public hearings along with planning and rezoning approvals from the city need to be conducted to move forward with the project.
State officials previously considered upgrading the Felmers O. Chaney Correctional Center in Milwaukee, but after hearing concerns the Department of Corrections began considering other sites in 2022.
DOC Secretary Kevin Carr said the prospective site selection is an important step moving forward because the majority residents would be closer to their families from southeastern Wisconsin for visitation and support.
“Everyone agreed back in 2018 that moving youth closer to their families and culturally-relevant programming were key factors in improving the state’s juvenile justice system,” Carr said. “We’re excited to move ahead, complete the work that remains and begin the long-overdue work on a new juvenile corrections facility in southeastern Wisconsin.”
