RACINE — Racine County Board supervisors whose districts lie in the City of Racine are standing by their decision to approve the construction of the new juvenile detention facility in the city, even though most of the City Council opposes the plan.
The amount of $290,000 for purchasing the former Brannum Lumber property on Taylor Avenue with the intent of making it a juvenile detention facility (or at least a parking lot to serve the facility) was approved last summer, although word of it flew mostly under the radar until months later.
Thirteen of the City of Racine’s 15 aldermen, as well as Mayor Cory Mason, have since come out in opposition to the county’s plan to build its juvenile detention center on Taylor Avenue.
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But, when the County Board voted to move forward with the $45 million project, only one supervisor, Fabi Maldonado, voted in opposition — and that opposition wasn’t intended to stop the project, but rather aimed to give more time for more people in the community to learn about it before shovels hit the dirt.
Opposition from Mason and the members of the City Council doesn’t have any legal power. The county owns the property and thus can build on it without city approval.
The current facility was constructed with an emphasis on incarceration, having been nearly devoid of windows with a primarily concrete construction on the fourth floor of the Racine County Dennis Kornwolf Service Center, 1717 Taylor Ave., across the street from the Brannum Lumber lot.
The proposed Racine County Youth, Development and Care Center will replace that facility and serve a maximum of 48 youths from Racine, Kenosha, Waukesha, Manitowoc and Washington counties.
An argued location
Brett Nielsen, District 8 Racine County Board Supervisor whose district includes the area surrounding Regency Mall, stands by his vote for the project.
He knows the location is a point of controversy, he said, but the spot selected “makes the most sense for the families” considering Racine parents of incarcerated youths wouldn’t have to travel far to visit them.
Supervisor Steve Smetana, whose District 3 includes the north side of Racine, responded to those who argue that the location is inappropriate.
“The location of the facility has been based on best practices and will further allow youth and families to stay connected and actively engage in the supportive programming that would be offered,” Smetana said in an email. “Critical supportive programs and services would be offered such as mental health programs and local partnerships for vocational training. This could be a very positive prospect for the future of our community.”
Supervisor Jody Spencer, whose District 5 constituents live in northwestern Racine as well as part of Caledonia, said in an email that it makes sense to keep the facility on the same campus where other Racine County services are available and close.
Nielsen added that the project will be a “huge improvement” for the surrounding areas as a “well-maintained county building.”
“This facility will not be ‘another prison.’ It will be a modern, trauma-informed building geared towards family healing, which is a far cry from our current detention center,” Nielsen said in the email. “Although this is just outside of my district, it’s only about 5 minutes from my home and I’m excited to see the improvement.”
Awareness of the topic
Spencer said she is disappointed the City Council was not aware of the proposal before the vote and she understands many of their concerns.
“If they had been directly invited to the forums and seen the Racine County Youth Development and Care Center YouTube video ahead of the vote, I think there would be more support,” Spencer said.
Nick Demske, District 1 supervisor, served on the committee that helped plan the facility. He said in an email that some of the County Board tried, unsuccessfully, to defer a decision on the topic because “the temperature of the community was still one of concern,” adding that it felt like community members didn’t know enough about the project. “Now that we had the public’s attention more on the issue, we thought that would be a reasonable decision — to defer.”
Additionally, Demske said, he believes that nobody on the County Board knew many City of Racine leaders were unaware of the proposed location.
“Had I known that, I definitely would’ve felt like it was inappropriate to take the vote that night, so all the more reason why I wish it had been deferred,” Demske said. “I think it’s obvious a project of this nature requires its most important stakeholders to be invested in it. If the leaders of the municipality where this project is set to be located are actively opposed to it, that is a really hard place to start.”
‘Not a healthy place’
“In my eyes, the current facility is not a healthy place for our troubled youth,” Spencer said, an opinion voiced by many in county and city leadership, despite city leaders still being opposed to the location. “It has many problems including lack of space conducive to offering adequate education and training, privacy for counseling and mental health services, family time, recreational space, etc.
“I stand by my decision to accept those funds, especially after touring the current facility and hearing from 5th District residents who asked me to support this.”
Demske had similar comments: “We have kids right now in the county’s care who are being held in a dungeon-like jail. That is unacceptable.” Demske has heard from a number of people who are opposed to the project, but he hasn’t heard from anyone who claims to have a better idea.
The worst decision would be to do nothing, he said.
“The city itself is not even opposed to the project, they’re just opposed to the chosen location,” Demske said. “So however we all move forward on this, the children currently held in our detention center and their families need to be in the center of all of our decision making. If we’re not making decisions that are best for them, then we’re simply not making the right decisions.”
“It’s disappointing to see it become a political battle with the City Council, when the focus should be for what’s best for the youth and their families,” Nielsen said in an email.
Smetana said in an email that he was “disheartened” when he heard so much pushback on a “well-thought-out project.”
He still supports the county moving forward with the Racine County Youth Development and Care Center.
“I believe the new facility will bring positive opportunities to the youth in our community by offering a more holistic approach to lead them to a promising future. I am eager and hopeful the groups can collaborate on this project and future projects in Racine,” Smetana said. “This is not about us. It is about the community we serve, and bettering opportunities for our youth. I refuse to support further division in our community.”
Maldonado, Melissa Kaprelian-Becker, Q.A. Shakoor II, Russell Clark and Eric Hopkins, the remaining County Board members whose districts are in the City of Racine wholly or in part, did not respond to requests for comment on this report.