Pataki: Replace Pharsalia
Chenango prison camp would turn into sex-offender facility
By Paul Ertelt
Capitol Bureau
ALBANY — A minimum-security prison camp in Chenango County would become the home of 500 "civilly confined" sex offenders under a plan unveiled Tuesday by Gov. George Pataki.
Under the $130 million proposal, the 258-bed Camp Pharsalia would be demolished and replaced with a secure facility with more than 1,000 employees and an $80 million annual payroll. The facility, to be operated by the state Office of Mental Health, is expected to open by 2009.
The announcement was seen as a sign that the governor is optimistic about the Legislature reaching a deal on legislation that would establish procedures for confining sexual predators who have served their prison sentences and been deemed mentally defective.
The governor has been trying to close the camp and other prison facilities for two years to reflect the decline in the state’s prison population, which has dropped from a peak of nearly 72,000 six years ago to less than 63,000.
Lawmakers from the regions affected have resisted those proposals because of their impact on local economies.
Pharsalia town Supervisor Dennis Brown said the project would bring needed jobs to his town and county, but residents will need assurances that the inmates won’t pose a threat to the community.
"We need that question answered," he said. However, he noted that the 60-bed Valley Ridge Center for Intensive Treatment in Norwich, which houses mentally disabled sex offenders, hasn’t created a public-safety problem.
"The CIT center down there has got some violent predators, and you don’t even know they’re there," he said.
The proposal is a major victory for state Sens. Thomas Libous and James Seward, who have worked to keep Pharsalia open.
"This is big news," said Seward, R-Milford.
Now, the two lawmakers said, it is time to hear from residents and ensure that their questions are answered and their concerns addressed.
Libous, R-Binghamton, said residents need to keep an open mind.
"We don’t get an opportunity to create a thousand jobs often," he said.
The New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association, the union that represents correction officers, praised the initiative to protect the public, but "we steadfastly oppose the closing of any correctional facility," said union President Larry Flanagan.
Mike Fraser, spokesman for the state Department of Correctional Services, said no Pharsalia employees will lose their jobs but that they will be transferred to other prisons. Camp Pharsalia houses 143 inmates and has a staff of 91, including 65 security personnel.
Advocates for the mentally ill said they were pleased the governor doesn’t plan to house sex offenders in mental hospitals.
But David Seay, executive director of the state chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, said he is concerned about the governor’s plan to seek $27 million to house sex offenders in existing mental- health facilities in the coming state fiscal year.
He wants assurances that the limited resources of the state Office of Mental Health won’t be tapped if that amount proves insufficient.
"If you don’t do that, people who need psychiatric treatment ain’t going to get it," he said.
The governor, who presents his budget next week, is also seeking $35 million to renovate existing OMH facilities so they can be used to temporarily house sex offenders.
In a related matter, lawmakers from both houses expressed hope that they would soon have a deal on civil confinement.
Sen. Dale Volker, the western New York Republican who is sponsoring civil confinement legislation in his house, said it appears that the Senate and Assembly are close enough to close on the issue soon.
"I don’t think it’s that far apart," he said.
Assemblyman Jeff Aubry, D-Queens, chairman of the Assembly Correction Committee, said there are some differences in the two bills, but "I don’t think they’re insurmountable."
The Assembly and Senate also agreed to meet in conference committee to come up with a plan to keep hundreds of lower-level sex offenders from dropping off of a state registry later this month.
, Art
Get a life and stop making my blood pressure rise. I know you believe these things. But that doesn't necessarily make the punishment fair, equitable, or just. I think I need a beer.