—
To accommodate the growing prison population, plans are underway to build a new high security correctional facility in Terre Haute, Ind. that will house 1,080 inmates on the same federal property where two existing prisons are already located. The design/build team of Clark / Hagerman / Schenkel Shultz, LLC was selected by the Federal Bureau of Prisons to complete the $101 million project. “Constructing a new penitentiary in Terre Haute helps us solve the problem of insufficient federal prison space, while also adding jobs to the community,” said U.S. Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana. Bayh pointed to the increasing bed shortage at federal facilities and current projections that the federal prison population will increase from about 122,000 inmates today to 205,000 inmates by 2007.
Twenty-first century correctional facility design emphasizes security, function and workability, new technologies, staff efficiency and livability. Schenkel Schultz Architecture of Indianapolis will incorporate these elements into the new 598,618-gross-square-foot prison, which will feature a precast concrete facade and 1,080 precast concrete cells.
The project team includes McComas Engineering, Inc. of Carmel, Ind., structural engineer; Newcomb & Boyd of Atlanta, mechanical/electrical engineer; Alta Consulting Services, Inc. of Kirkland, Wash., security consultant; and Patriot Engineering of Terre Haute, Ind., geotechnical engineer. The anticipated completion date of the project is early 2004.
The original United States Penitentiary (USP) Terre Haute was constructed in 1940 on 33 acres enclosed by a secure perimeter double fence. Adjacent to this facility is a minimum-security camp for male offenders. USP Terre Haute is one of nine federal high-security prisons, which confine the Bureau’s most dangerous offenders. In 1993, the Bureau designated the compound as the site where the federal death penalty would be implemented and in response, a Special Confinement Unit was established.
Clark Construction Group, LLC is headquartered in Bethesda, Md.
###
