Efforts by community advocates to provide outdoor recreation for inmates at the Centre County Correctional Facility reached an important milestone on Tuesday.
The Centre County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to issue a request for qualifications (RFQ) to perform an outdoor recreation areas feasibility study and analysis for the jail in Benner Township.
The study would analyze pre-construction, staffing, safety and security, warden Glenn Irwin said.
After the RFQ is advertised, Irwin and county administrator John Franek will answer any questions from interested companies by April 26, and responses to the RFQ will be due by May 10.
“I think this is a good approach to a concern that many people in the community have brought to the prison board in terms of the accessibility of outdoor space or being able to have some recreation in the outdoors for inmates at the Centre County Correctional Facility,” Board of Commissioners Vice-Chair Amber Concepcion said.
The correctional facility, which opened in 2005, has indoor recreational areas with openings for fresh air, but the only time incarcerated individuals are outdoors is when they are out for work release. Most county jails in Pennsylvania operate in similar fashion, with only about 20% having dedicated outdoor recreation areas.
“I think it’s important to note that while the state of Pennsylvania permits exactly the kind of recreation facilities we do have in our Centre County Correctional Facility, what this RFQ is doing is trying to get some expertise, some analysis to help us see ways we might be able to improve the spaces we have,” Concepcion said.
In 2022, advocates began calling on the county to provide outdoor opportunities for inmates, and last year the prison board formed a review committee to explore the issue. After input at a number of meetings, the board recommended in March that the commissioners approve the RFQ.
Thirteen people from an overflow crowd on Tuesday at the Willowbank Building spoke to express their support for taking steps toward the study and to thank the commissioners for moving forward with the RFQ.
Ken Kline Smeltzer, of Harris Township, called it “an important step toward improving the physical and mental health of incarcerated persons at the Centre County Correctional Facility.”
“We know that this is only a first, even preliminary step, but we are grateful that you recognize this major gap in the humane treatment of our fellow citizens, and that you have responded to those of us encouraging the county to provide outdoor rec at the prison,” Kline Smeltzer said. “We will support you in making this study and spending our county’s funds in this endeavor. It’s the right thing to do.”
Jonathan Bojan, of State College, said he and others understand outdoor recreation is difficult to implement, but also that it is “critical.”
“I know, from living in this community my entire life, this community has incredible compassion, incredible resources, incredible intellect, and also incredible will to help,” Bojan said. “I think more than anywhere that I’ve been in my life, this community has the potential to cultivate a prison system where we can support our staff in supporting our incarcerated, and supporting our incarcerated in being able to get to a better place.”
The study will help county leaders determine what options are possible, as well as how much they will cost and how much staffing they will require. Jail officials previously expressed concerns about how many extra staff members might be needed to sufficiently accommodate outdoor recreation.
Janet Irons, of the Centre County chapter of the Pennsylvania Prison Society, said original plans for the correctional facility included outdoor yards, and fencing was even put out for bids before ultimately being tabled.
“This is not about whether it’s feasible,” Irons said. “It’s about finding a way to happen now and correcting a mistake that happened almost 20 years ago.”
Commissioner Steve Dershem said he is hopeful the RFQ and study “will answer some of those questions,” about what is possible and how much it will cost.
The study is expected to “explore all the options and present that to us as a final product,” Irwin said. Board Chair Mark Higgins added that county officials do not have preconceived ideas for the set up.
“We’re pretty much a clean slate on this thing,” Higgins said.
