Rockview closure decision not expected before May, Shapiro administration says
Hundreds of families awaiting a decision from Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration about the future of Rockview state prison could have their answer as soon as the middle of next month.
Pennsylvania Department of Corrections Secretary Laurel R. Harry said Tuesday the earliest the agency anticipates making its decision on the proposed closure of the facility is the week of May 12, the first Monday after the required three-month public comment period.
Quehanna Boot Camp in neighboring Clearfield County is also proposed for closure.
Feedback will still be accepted through email or voicemail for the next three weeks, but it seems likely workers and residents won’t have another opportunity to make their feelings known in person.
When asked if the department planned to host more than the one required public hearing in Centre and Clearfield counties, a spokesman told the Centre Daily Times “these are the only two events hosted by the DOC.”
He also said the DOC does not have a deadline for accepting public comment or making a final decision. Feedback can be submitted by sending an email to ra-crdocclose@pa.gov or by leaving a voicemail at 888-316-8950.
Shapiro’s administration has pitched its proposal as a way to save the state tens of millions of dollars in the face of shrinking state prison populations, high vacancy and turnover rates among corrections officers, and massive overtime payments.
Rockview is the second-oldest in the state prison system and the agency has said it would require $74 million in upgrades over the next five years if it were to remain open — the highest cost of any state prison.
The Pennsylvania Prison Society is generally supportive of the proposal, saying it could save money and keep Pennsylvanians safe if done properly. In operation more than a century, the nonprofit has said the prison is in serious disrepair.
A bipartisan group of elected officials, the union that represents corrections officers and even the prison’s top administrator were among those who joined the nearly three dozen people Tuesday to speak against the proposal.
Many raised concerns about serious challenges families could face, uprooting the more than 2,000 people incarcerated at the prison and the effect on central Pennsylvania’s economy.