A Prison on Hackett Hill?

On January 6, 2012, the New Hampshire Union Leader headlines announced - "Hackett Hill Eyed for Prison".

An article by Beth LaMontagne Hall explained that developer Richard Danais had brought forth a development plan strikingly different from his previous proposal for a Hackett Hill industrial-business park. The new plan called for the construction of a "private prison" on property he had obtained from the City of Manchester.

Danais revealed that out-of-state companies affiliated with the private prison business were eyeing his property for construction of a prison of this type.

Interest in prison-building on the Hackett Hill property was strongly related to a recent state announcement that it hopes to relocate persons from the Concord State Prison, which was described as "aging". The state is seeking proposals for the construction of a new prison that would be located elsewhere.

Danais noted that a Hackett Hill prison would occupy only 25% of his ~ 100 acre property. The project would take 18-24 months to complete, since it would be a 100-150 million dollar project. He noted that a private prison could generate an estimated 2.1 million dollars annually in Manchester property taxes.

In her article, Hall noted the opposition of Ward 12 Alderman Patrick Arnold to the plan. Arnold had strongly supported the Danais purchase of the property, apparently assuming that the plans originally proposed for development of an industrial and/or business park would not be modified from their original description.

Reaction to the Initial Prison Plan Surfaces

Subsequently articles appeared in the UL and the NH Sunday News that concerned reaction to the prison proposal. It was noted that Hooksett residents living in the Hackett Hill area, and a Hooksett town official, were disturbed by the prison possibility - a predictable response, especially since a psychiatric ward would occupy a part of the prison. Councilman Jim Sullivan brought up Manchester's original plans to build a fire station in the Hackett Hill area - an undertaking that had yet to surface.

It was reported that Mayor Gatsas likened the new proposal to previous efforts to locate a federal half-way house on Elm St. and a prison for women on River Road - both of which met with strong opposition from Manchester's residents. He also noted that city zoning codes prohibit correctional institutions in Manchester.

On January 12, the UL reported that Danais and an official of a Utah-based prison company met with the Hooksett Town Council.

At the meeting, Danais explained that the prison would only occupy a small per cent of his property (about 25%) with the rest of the area acting as a buffer. He noted that the prison would not be visible to Hooksett neighbors and that the prison would have tremendous economic benefit to Manchester. He also stated that 600 permanent jobs would be created if the prison was constructed.

Meanwhile, limited interest in locating a prison in Litchfield surfaced briefly, but this possibility was later withdrawn. Town officials cited the incompatibility of a prison and the layout and character of the town.

More Details Are Made Public

On January 18, the UL provided more details about two companies that had responded to the state's RFP (Request for Proposals) for replacement of the present Concord State Prison, as well as noting some characteristics of private prisons.

The companies were identified as - The Management and Training Corporation (MTC) and Correctional Corporations of America (CCA). Both companies are large and have facilities in many other states.

The presentation to the public of the more detailed information plans gave Richard Danais, who is working with MTC on a possible Hackett Hill location, an opportunity to speak out again in support of the plan. He defended the private prison industry as being more efficiently run and safer than state-run institutions.

However, the UL article noted that there is considerable variation in the characteristics of private prisons, re cost-saving and misconduct incidents. Instances were provided where lapses in security had occurred in the operations of both companies - behavior that apparently is typical of the industry.