Michigan City leaders go all-in on planning for Indiana State Prison site
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City leaders in Michigan City have a major task on their hands as they consider what to do with the soon-to-be vacated site of the Indiana State Prison.
Construction began last fall on the new $1.2 billion corrections facility in Westville that will serve as a new home for both the state prison and the Westville Correctional Facility.
Now, leaders up the road in Michigan City are forming a team of consultants, architects and designers to create a master plan for what will go on the site of the prison once it moves south.
On Monday, the Economic Development Corp. of Michigan City announced that Farr Associates Architecture, Terra Engineering, Zimmerman/Volk Associates, Sam Schwartz Engineering and others are joining the team of professionals who will make the plan.
In a news release, Doug Farr of Farr Associates said the city and the EDCMC are smart to bring in a variety of experts given the complex nature of redevelopment at that site.
“The decision to relocate the Indiana State Prison and redevelop the site creates a huge economic development opportunity for the City of Michigan City,” Farr said. “Under normal circumstances redeveloping a large land parcel is a complex process that can take decades. The redevelopment of a 19th Century State Prison is a far more complicated process that requires coordinated leadership from the State of Indiana and the City of Michigan City.
“The first step in this process is establishing a viable redevelopment vision with broad public support.”
The Indiana State Prison originally opened in 1860 as the state’s second prison. It’s located on the western edge of Michigan City, less than a mile away from the city’s downtown and shopping center. For the past few years, the prison has had around 2,300 inmates incarcerated any given time. The new prison being built at the site of the WCF will have 4,200 beds.
Officials say just the planning stage will last through the end of 2025 as the consultants analyze the site and various possible designs and gather public feedback on what should go there. The EDCMC was given Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative, or READI, grant funding to help pay for the planning process.
Construction on the new correctional facility is scheduled to last four years, potentially finishing in late 2027.
The EDCMC release does not specify what type of development officials are eyeing, but Sherri Ziller, CEO of the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority, told Inside INdiana Business last fall that she thinks it would be a good idea to focus on housing.
“It’s a large site. It can fit some much needed affordable housing, senior housing workforce housing, along with the necessary retail and office space that Michigan City is seeking it,” Ziller said. “This could serve as a major job generator for Michigan City.”
Officials with the Indiana Department of Correction say closing the current prison in Michigan City will save nearly $400 million in capital improvement spending on top of the $45 million in annual operating costs.