By Aaron Falk Deseret News
Deseret Morning News
SALT LAKE CITY — With a six-month moratorium on halfway houses set to expire this month, Salt Lake City leaders are considering a plan that would make room for a 300-bed parole center on the city’s west side. The city issued the moratorium last August after the state Department of Corrections’ plans to build a correctional center near 500 West and 1000 South raised concerns from residents and city officials.
Now the city is considering changes to its ordinances that would place more restrictions on halfway houses and relegate larger facilities to industrial areas west of I-215. A public hearing on the matter is set for 7 p.m. Tuesday in the City Council Chambers, 451 S. State.
“We’re not against the idea, just the location,” said Councilman Van Turner, who would like to see the area near 500 West and 900 South redeveloped and turned into a city center with shops and high-rise apartments. “This is something that would just take up valuable space.”
Turner’s west-side district is already home to three halfway houses, including a 115-bed facility for federal inmates and a 68-bed facility for state sex offenders.
“They’re good neighbors,” Turner said of the centers. Under the newly proposed regulations, halfway houses, or “community correctional facilities,” would be allowed on a case-by-case basis and come with a handful of restrictions.
Facilities with 30 or more residents would be allowed in light industrial zones west of I-215. Smaller facilities would be allowed in light industrial and general commercial zones. Neither could be built within one-half mile of a residential boundary, school, nursery, place of worship or another halfway house. Centers would also have to report to the city’s planning director each year.
The state’s proposed parole center, which could eventually house up to 522 people, would be a place for parole violators to “get a tune-up” while keeping precious bed space free in the state’s crowded prison system, said Corrections spokeswoman Angie Welling.
The Legislature, however, has pulled more than half of the funding for the $7.6 million center “largely because of the moratorium,” Welling said. “We anticipate losing the remaining funding.” Despite an uncertain finances, the department remains hopeful the center would be built, she said. “We’re still in discussions with” the private developer tapped to run the facility, Welling said.
“They’re well aware of the current economic climate. But from our department’s standpoint, we’re very interested in opening this facility.”
Despite concerns about housing parole violators in the area, Corrections officials said the facility would be secure and safe for the community. A study by the Salt Lake Police Department showed similar facilities “had no negative effect on services.”
“These aren’t prison inmates,” Welling said. “They’re already out in the community and they’re struggling. The department understands the concerns. We want to work to address those issues. We want to make sure people are comfortable.”
Copyright 2009 The Deseret News Publishing Co.