Shuttered federal prison could have new life, bring back Philipsburg area jobs. Here’s why
Clearfield County’s decision-makers inked a five-year contract Tuesday to repurpose a former private federal prison as a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility.
The reopening of the former Moshannon Valley Correctional Center could bring back upward of 300 jobs to the region. Moshannon Valley Economic Develop Partnership Executive Director Stan LaFuria hailed it as “terrific news.”
“If 250 people were employed there and the average salary was $60,000, that’s $15 million in income to the employees,” LaFuria wrote in an email. “... That number represents a huge amount of buying power by the employees ... and (provides) a huge stimulus to the area economy.”
The about 1,878-bed facility less than five miles from Philipsburg is expected to open by mid-to-late November, Clearfield County Commissioner Tony Scotto said Wednesday.
Neither Scotto nor ICE were immediately able to divulge how much the agreement will pay the GEO Group to operate the facility.
About 800 people are set to be detained at the facility when it opens, Scotto said. No children are expected to be detained.
“We’re happy to be able to restore these jobs in the county,” Scotto said.
The GEO Group is the top taxpayer in the Philipsburg-Osceola Area School District. The real estate investment group poured in nearly $475,000 annually, district Superintendent Gregg Paladina said when the prison’s closure was announced.
A permanent closure of the facility would have been “catastrophic” for the district and all but guaranteed job cuts, Paladina said in January. He struck a more optimistic tone Wednesday.
“Having this facility running within our district has much better implications for our taxpayers and citizens for the future,” Paladina wrote in a text message. “... Right now, we are self-sufficient with our current resources and we haven’t had to cut any positions this year. I don’t anticipate any large-scale tax hikes since that revenue will still be in place.”
The prison closed March 31 after the agency that oversees federal prisons declined an option to renew its contract at the direction of President Joe Biden.
Closing private federal prisons was one step to prevent corporations from profiting off incarceration, Biden said in January. Federal prison populations have also declined each of the past seven years.
“While I was greatly disappointed that the Biden administration shuttered Moshannon Valley Correctional Facility through executive order and eliminated hundreds of local jobs, this is a positive development for Clearfield County,” U.S. Rep. Glenn Thompson, R-Howard, wrote in a statement. “I look forward to working with the county, ICE and the facility’s operators to ensure this transition runs smoothly.”
This story was originally published September 29, 2021 at 12:50 PM.