BY JIMMY LAWTON
North Country This Week

OGDENSBURG- Ogdensburg Correctional Facility is among six prisons slated for closure, according to New York State Department of Corrections officials.

Ogdensburg Correctional Facility, Downstate Correctional, Southport Correctional, Rochester Correctional, Willard Drug Treatment Campus and Moriah Shock Incarceration are all slated for closure on March 10, 2022.

Ogdensburg Mayor Jeffrey M. Skelly said the news is devastating.

"It's devastating. But it shows us the urgency in rebuilding and reinventing the city so we can move ahead," he said. "All we can hope for is that with the upcoming development there will be some new jobs and more people coming into town," he said.

New York State Correctional Officers Police Benevolent Association President Michael Powers could not be immediately reached for comment.

“As of November 8, 2021, the total incarcerated population in state correctional facilities is 31,469. This represents both a total reduction in excess of 12,700 individuals since January 1, 2020, and the lowest total incarcerated population in New York State prisons since 1984. This is more than a 56% decline in population since the Department’s high of 72,773 in 1999, with New York leading the nation with the lowest imprisonment rate of any large state,” DOCCS Spokesman Thomas Mailey said in a prepared statement.

“DOCCS carefully reviewed the operations at its 50 correctional facilities for possible closure. This review was based on a variety of factors, including physical infrastructure, program offerings, facility security level, specialized medical and mental health services, proximity of other facilities in the area to minimize the impact to staff, potential re-use options and areas of the state where prior closures have occurred in order to minimize the impact to communities. Consideration of the impact of the recently enacted HALT and Less Is More legislation was also weighed.”

Mailey said the closure process will begin immediately and said no layoffs are anticipated and the end result will be a savings of approximately $142 million for taxpayers.

Ogdensburg Correctional Facility is a medium security institution, that has a current staff of 268, with 158 incarcerated individuals and a capacity of 557.

 "The City of Ogdensburg is disappointed in Governor Hochul’s decision to close the Ogdensburg Correctional Facility. In her initial remarks upon being sworn-in after the resignation of Governor Cuomo, Governor Hochul promised to do business differently and increase transparency. The process for determining the priority order for closing prisons is not transparent, under either Governor, and the timing of these decisions remains in question as yet another dedicated group of Corrections Officers and Support Staff face the loss of jobs or reassignment out of the area as the holiday season approaches. As Mayor of Ogdensburg, I call on Governor Hochul to place this decision on hold, provide the decision matrix being used and meet with local officials to discuss the impacts to our local families and economy," Mayor Skelly said in a prepared statement.

Assemblyman Mark Walczyk (R,C,I-Watertown), 116th Assembly District, criticized the proposed prison closure.

"This hip-fire closure plan reminds me of the Cuomo administration. Leaders plan. During the budget hearings earlier this year, I made it clear to the Commissioner of DOCCS that you don’t announce the closure of a State prison and then figure out what to do with the building later. Closing a prison with no plan is lazy, it's not fair for the hardworking staff, and devastating to a host community like Ogdensburg. It’s also pretty terrible for the taxpayer, too," stated Walczyk..

"The move to close the Ogdensburg Correctional Facility proves to me the Commissioner and the Governor didn’t listen. The St. Lawrence County economy relies on the more than 250 jobs associated with this facility. State leaders in Albany didn’t plan accordingly and instead, they have torpedoed the upstate economy. I'm calling on Governor Hochul to exercise some transparency, listen to reason, and develop a closure plan that's logistically sound and fair to all concerned. I stand side-by-side with our region’s brave COs and staff," he continued.

"Additionally, everything she's done so far has shown Governor Hochul cares more about the comfortable lifestyle of convicted, violent felons than she does about Corrections Officers, Law Enforcement, taxpayers, or safety on our streets," said Walczyk in a pprepared statement.