(THE CITY) Rachel Holliday Smith, Rosa Goldensohn, Reuven Blau, July 17, 2019

When some people look at a soon-to-be-closed men’s state prison with Central Park views, they envision pricey condos.

Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer looks at the Lincoln Correctional Facility — and sees a new home for the female inmates currently held on Rikers Island.

“I think, generally, people would love it not to be a condo,” Brewer said of the eight-story minimum-security men’s lockup on West 110th Street. “That would be their first request.”

Her proposal marked the latest idea sparked by plans to shutter the state-owned facility that occupies prime real estate.

Brewer’s recommendation came as a backdrop to the city’s much-debated proposal to close Rikers and move inmates into four new jails slated for every borough, except for Staten Island. The borough president slipped her idea into her July 5 response to the city’s jail quartet plan.

She said her proposal is “very preliminary,” but stressed the importance of finding a public use for the property as real estate interests circle.

The Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice said Brewer’s plan would be viable only if the state gave ownership to the city.

State officials said no decision has been made on the building’s future. Brewer and others noted the state has previously turned over former lockups in Chelsea and The Bronx to nonprofits that help formerly incarcerated people.

Source: https://thecity.nyc/2019/07/brewer-floats-womens-jail-for-lockup-near-central-park.html

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