Lincoln county commissioners decided against discussing the Department of Corrections’ response letter on a proposed new men’s state prison.
This comes after a group of landowners moved to take legal action against the DOC over its proposed new site.
The anticipated conversation on the DOC letter was removed from the commission’s agenda at Tuesday's meeting. The letter was in response to Lincoln County commissioners officially requesting information form the DOC about the new prison.
Resident Mona Homin asked the commission during the meeting's public comment section why the conversation was removed. Lincoln County Commission Chairperson Tiffany Landeen did not offer an explanation, noting commissioners are not obligated to answer questions during public comment. Landeen also said the DOC's letter is available online.
The letter, penned by DOC Secretary Kellie Wasko, addressed concerns surrounding infrastructure, safety, and future growth. Wasko also expressed the DOC’s excitement to work with Lincoln County.
Some of the landowners in Lincoln County opposed to the prison location developed a group named Neighbors Opposing Prison Expansion, or NOPE. The group agrees with the need for a new prison but opposes what they said is lack of transparency from the state DOC on site location.
The group filed a lawsuit challenging the state’s authority in choosing the site. They hope the litigation will push the DOC to pick a new location through collaboration with residents.
