SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — If a state built a prison in the past nine years, it was likely the most, or one of the most expensive, public projects in that state.
The planned new men’s prison in Lincoln County has an $826 million guaranteed maximum price. When built, it will also join the ranks of one of the most expensive public projects in the state.
How does South Dakota’s project compare to other states? It was a question raised during the update from the South Dakota Department of Corrections at Thursday’s legislative Joint Committee on Appropriations.
DOC officials and another state official and representatives of JE Dunn, Henry Carlson Construction, said the price and the overall project is comparable to other states, but “there are differences.”
Comparisons aren’t always apples to apples. Some states were able to use property at existing prison sites or structured the facilities with dedicated minimum buildings and maximum security buildings.
A state with land next to an existing prison may be able to reduce costs, because it does not need to buy land. If a facility is next to an existing facility, the costs for connecting to water and sewer, for example, can be lower than if it has to bring infrastructure in.
A 2021 study for South Dakota by the DLR Group estimated the cost of a new men’s prison at $338 million. During a February 2024 legislative joint appropriations committee meeting, the increase to $567 million in dedicated funds was discussed.
State engineer Stacy Watters said at the Feb. 21 meeting that DLR used the inflation rate of about 3% from 2020 and 2021. The inflation rate from 2021 to 2024 has been about 7.5% to 8% nationwide. Inflation is one reason for the increase from $338 million to more than $500 million.
Earlier this year, the state agency estimated the cost would be about $700 million.
Nebraska
The Nebraska prison project in Lincoln has often been raised in legislative and other discussions over the past year and a half.
The estimated cost of a new men’s prison in Lincoln, Nebraska, is more than $350 million, according to a report from the Inspector General of the Nebraska Correctional System.
The number could change because the project is still in the design stage, according to the report. A new 1,512-bed prison was announced in August of 2023. The plan was for a prison to be broken up into buildings of different security with 400 in high security, 500 in medium security and a 600 bed camp.
Construction was scheduled to begin this year, but the state does not expect to take bids until early 2025. The completion date was been extended from 2026 to 2028.
Although the most recent plan was announced in 2023, the state has been discussing a prison since at least 2020.
In 2020 the corrections system sought state money for a new 1,512-bed with a breakdown of 600 minimum, 512 medium and 400 maximum custody beds, with room to allow for future expansion at a base cost of $230 million, according to a corrections system news release.
South Dakota’s plan is for the entire facility to be Level 5 or maximum security, which would primarily house inmates in medium and maximum classification. DOC Secretary Kellie Wasko said Thursday that one of the state’s units in the new prison would include those restricted to a cell for about 22 hours a day.
Kansas
The state of Kansas built a new state prison in Lansing that opened in February 2020. The 1,920-bed medium and maximum facility also had a 512-bed minimum security facility.
The project is described as a lease to purchase project in several state documents. A 2021 corrections document said that in 2017, the project’s cost was capped at $155 million.
By July of 2017, a legislative audit said the cost needed to increase to $206 million.
The actual cost will be at least $300 million.
The lease partnership with CoreCivic who handled the design, build, finance and maintenance of the facility. The state has a lease partnership with CoreCivic for 20 years. CoreCivic will maintain the prison facilities while the state of Kansas will staff and operate them.
The state will pay CoreCivic about $15 million a year for 20 years, according to multiple media reports. Those payments are scheduled to increase about 2% each year, according to the Topeka Capital Journal.
The Lansing project includes two 960-bed unit buildings and one 512-bed minimum security dormitory, according to CoreCivic.
JE Dunn was partner in the Lansing project. JE Dunn is a partner in the planned South Dakota project. The DLR Group was also a partner in Kansas. DLR completed a prison study for South Dakota in 2021.
New Hampshire
New Hampshire’s Department of Corrections Capital Improvement Budget for Fiscal Year 2026-2027 includes $583.6 million for a new men’s prison. The project is in the initial design phase with the DLR Group.
The men’s prison is in Concord. It was built in 1878 and last renovated in the 1980.
The New Hampshire Legislature approved about $10 million for design of a new facility. The proposed new prison would be about 500,000 square feet at this point and would have 1,500 beds.
On May 8, the state’s Department of Corrections Secretary Helen Hanks told the state House Financial Division that a site behind the women’s prison was being considered for the new men’s facility.
That site is about 300 acres.
Georgia
In 2022, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said $600 million would be needed for two new prisons to replace four men’s prisons.
The estimated price in early 2023 for a new prison in Washington County was about $320 million but that price changed.
The state’s Amended FY 2024 budget included $450.8 million to complete construction of a state new prison facility in Washington County. That price was also reduced to about $436 million.
The budget information said this of the new prison in Washington County: “Designed with both correctional officer and inmate safety in mind, the new facility features a separate staff mezzanine for access and observation, precast cells, and rear pipe chases to prevent the introduction of contraband and weapons.”
The prison will be built on land owned by the state, near an existing prison. It is reported to have 1,500 beds. The existing Washington County prison has medium and minimum-security inmates.
