Washington Co. reacts to Hochul prison closure talks

COMSTOCK, N.Y. (NEWS10) — You’ve heard of college and resort towns but what about prison towns? Governor Kathy Hochul has proposed the advancement of legislation allowing the state to close up to five prisons, to make the correctional system more efficient. Leaders in communities like Comstock say the potential loss of prisons like Great Meadows would economically devastate them.

In the shadow of the Great Meadows Maximum correctional facility is Fort Ann which encompasses Comstock. Even though the exact prisons that could close under Hocul’s efficiency plan haven't been identified, the rural town’s supervisor says the facility is their lifeblood.

“It’s got 550 employees, the largest employer in Washington County. On a local level what it does to us? We're basically destroyed, a lot of the businesses we have there,” said Ft Ann Town Supervisor Samuel J Hall.

If the governor decides on this, prisons will have 90 days to close. Hall doesn't think that's enough time. “It's a government agency we thought we'd be given to process if they were gonna go through to see how we would affect our community," said the Republican town supervisor.

“I don't see the closing of Great Meadows bringing anything good to this community” added Scott Hahn. Mr. Hahn worked at Great Meadows for 23 years as a corrections officer. He’s now the supervisor for the nearby town of Hartford. Hahn implores the governor to think of the impact on local families. 

“We are an aging community, so a place like Great Meadow employs younger people, and it gives the means to raise a family where we don't have a lot of business," the Republican town supervisor told NEWS10.

If officers were to lose their jobs, Hahn is worried about a resultant population exodus from his already sparse community of over 2200 people.

“They're going to have to pick up their whole family and move to another town another part of the state or even find employment in another state,” said Hahn.

It's not clear when Hochul will make a decision on which facilities could close. Hartford’s town supervisor will be in touch with community leaders to plan protests against the proposition.