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The leaders of the Prison Relocation Commission have changed their minds and will now attend three public meetings in the cities that could host a new state penitentiary.
The original plan was to send consultants and support staff to answer questions at meetings, where organized opposition groups are urging their members to turn out en masse. The commission has billed the sessions as a way to combat false criticism of the prison move, while more formal hearings — with an opportunity for public comment — would take place when consultants wrap up a technical review of each potential site.
Earlier this week, state Sen. Jerry Stevenson, R-Layton, co-chairman of the commission, said he saw no reason why he would go to "get skewered by the public" when a technical review of the sites is still proceeding.
Prison critics and locally elected officials, including Grantsville Mayor Brent Marshall, criticized commission members for "shielding themselves" from the public.
Stevenson and his co-chairman, Rep. Brad Wilson, R-Kaysville, met Wednesday and decided that they should participate in the meetings, the first of which will take place Wednesday in Salt Lake City, with subsequent meetings in Grantsville and Eagle Mountain. Questions at the meetings will be filtered through a moderator.
"The bottom line is, this is what I got elected for," Stevenson said Thursday. "I don't know if I'll have a lot to say, but I'll certainly listen. ... I'm not going to be there to argue with anyone."
Stevenson knows there will be plenty of attendees who don't want to see the prison, now in Draper, relocated to their area.
Some residents have complained that a prison would depress property values, scare away businesses from relocating, wound a city's reputation and bring an unsavory element into their neighborhoods.
He believes much of the opposition is a knee-jerk reaction.
"There is a group out there who are just totally against what is going on," Stevenson said. "I don't know if they are going to change their minds, but they should at least have all of the information."
Wilson said the commission wants a transparent process and encourages "meaningful public participation."
The state will provide an artist's rendering of a modern prison, which doesn't have the guard towers or imposing gray buildings usually associated with a lockup. Instead it will look, in many ways, like a school, where smaller buildings will house various levels of offenders.
A new prison is likely to cost more than $500 million to build. The state wants to move the prison to replace aging, outdated buildings in Draper and turn prime land along Interstate 15 into a business park.
The five potential sites for a new prison are west of Salt Lake City International Airport, in southern Eagle Mountain and in nearby Fairfield and two parcels in Tooele County, next to the Wal-Mart Distribution Center and the Miller Motorsports Park.
The ongoing technical review is aimed at determining how much it will cost to build on each site and bring needed utilities such as sewer, water and electrical.
Within the next six weeks, that review will be completed and the commission will reduce the list of potential sites. After that, more formal public hearings will take place.
Prison relocation public information meetings
» Wednesday, May 20, 2015, 4–9 p.m.
Promontory Building, Utah State Fairpark
155 N. 1000 West
Salt Lake City
» Thursday, May 28, 2015, 4-9 p.m.
Grantsville High School
155 E. Cherry St.
Grantsville
» Tuesday, June 2, 2015, 4–9 p.m.
Frontier Middle School
1427 Mid Valley Road
Eagle Mountain