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A new women’s prison could be coming to Vermont.One of the towns that’s being looked at as a possible destination is Essex.”We like to be on or near municipal utilities, close to public transit, and the size of the site we need, we’re looking at about 20 acres to get the billable area that we need,” said Tabrena Karish, Vermont Building and General Services’ project manager.Thursday night, there was a public meeting at the town of Essex for the state to discuss their plans.The planning commission team and the public were able to weigh their opinions on the presentation.State officials want to invest around $70 million into building a brand-new 158-bed facility.It would replace the existing Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility in South Burlington, which has been there for more than 50 years.”It was designed to be a men’s detention facility. But for the last several years, we’ve been using it as a women’s facility, a purpose it wasn’t built for,” said Nick Deml, Vermont Department of Corrections commissioner. “It’s also in disrepair. It’s old. It has some deferred maintenance, and it’s time to replace it.”If the state built the facility in Essex, they are looking at two possible locations.One is an area adjacent to Landfill Lane.The other is land off River Road.However, they would need the town’s zoning regulations to be adjusted for those to be real possibilities.”Most towns and cities do not have specific zoning purposes for corrections. Essex happens to have existing zoning for corrections,” Karish said.However, some, like the American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont, or ACLU, oppose the concept.”It’s too big. It keeps too many people behind bars when there are other ways to better rehabilitate folks and get them involved in the community, and it’s just too costly,” said Falko Schilling, ACLU’s Vermont advocacy director.Schilling feels there are better ways for the state to spend its money.”Investments in things like housing that are treatment, infrastructure, harm reduction, and numerous other ways we can support people in making sure that the folks who are incarcerated don’t get involved in crime in the first place, and when if they do get involved in the criminal legal system that they have better supports reenter their communities,” Schilling said.Deml feels a new facility could help them accomplish a lot of those same goals.”Our job is to take care of folks when they’re with us,” Deml said. “We’re asking for a facility that enables us to do that in the best way possible, that introduces gender-responsive practices, that is trauma-informed, that is designed for the needs of the people who live and work there.”The state will present its plans to the town of Essex again in the next two to four weeks.There will be a public hearing at that next meeting.