Closure of Florence prison continues as Eloy facility selected to house up to 2,706 prisoners

PHOENIX — The process of shuttering Arizona’s oldest state prison located in Florence continues as an Eloy correctional center was selected to house up to 2,706 adult prisoners.

The Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry announced the selection of the La Palma Correctional Center on Friday, marking a major step in the deactivation of the aging state prison that opened in 1904.

“Thanks to our successful partnership, along with their modern correctional facility capacity and excellent reentry services, we are confident in their ability to continue to care for those in our custody,” ADCRR Director David Shinn said in a press release.

“Florence, which was constructed in the early 1900s, is like an old home in need of repairs which is more costly to maintain. That just doesn’t make sense.”

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey ordered the closure of the Florence facility in January 2020.

Shinn in the release said rehabilitation of the Florence state prison would cost upwards of $150 million and construction of a new facility would cost more than $800 million.

“Not only is this a significant cost saving to the state, but it allows ADCRR to redeploy staff to our complexes making it safer for both staff and inmates,” Shinn said in the release.

The Eloy correctional center is operated by CoreCivic, which is a partner of ADCRR and houses nearly 2,000 of its inmates. CoreCivic was selected by the department in a competitive process, with the per diem per bed rate being contracted at just over $85 per inmate, according to the release.

The management contract signed between the department and CoreCivic last month has an initial term of five years with one five-year extension option, according to the release.

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