Corrections Secretary Joe Norwood presented a proposal for CoreCivic to design, build, finance and maintain the facility over a 20-year term. Under the proposal, KDOC will continue to staff and operate the facility.

See the KDOC presentation

The proposed plan will be cost-neutral, and would not require any additional up-front appropriation to the Department. In addition to the Joint State Building Committee, the KDOC will present the proposed construction project to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee in December and will seek final approval of the project from the State Finance Council.

Under CoreCivic’s proposal, Kansas City-based JE Dunn would be the general contractor for the project and 80% of the construction work will be done within the state, by Kansas companies.  

The Lansing Correctional Facility was originally constructed in 1863. The aging infrastructure and antiquated design requires additional staff and maintenance resources to operate safely.  The facility currently consumes 46 percent of the KDOC’s capital improvement budget dedicated for all eight state prisons. If approved, the new facility will be completed within 24 months and would house more than 2,400 offenders and provide much-needed programming space while reducing operational costs for the Department of Corrections.

Financed through a base-year lease of $14.9 million with a 1.94% escalator, the State of Kansas would own the facility at the end of the 20 year term at no additional cost.

KDOC has struggled to recruit and retain the high levels of staffing that Lansing Correctional Facility requires to operate. Savings from reduced staffing levels and by keeping existing infrastructure (industry buildings, warehouse, firing range, utilities), the project can be built within the existing KDOC budget.

“We must be in a position to meet the state’s current and future correctional needs in the most cost-effective manner,” Secretary Norwood said. “Under the terms of the CoreCivic proposal, Kansas can make Lansing safer and bring the facility into the 21^st century.”

Norwood noted that improved working conditions also would be safer for employees and more attractive for prospective employees.

Key features of the proposal include:

●       Two housing units: a 1,920-bed maximum and medium unit and a 512-bed minimum unit.

●       Medical Services (improved design for aging population) Food Service, Spiritual Life, and Staff Support areas

●       Indoor and outdoor recreation areas, ample site circulation and parking, and improved lighting and security

●       Modern utility systems that provide significant cost and energy savings

●       Capacity for future expansion

●       Local maintenance staff, locksmiths, and professional services

●       Energy saving shell design with top-of-the-line roofing system, and highly insulated walls systems

●       Security systems include triple-biased magnetic door switches, and enhanced video surveillance systems

●       Layout controls the movement of inmate population.