WAKITA — Plans for an all-Christian prison in this small town in northern Grant County have stalled on legislative and administrative fronts.

The idea for the prison — which would have Christian administrators, staff, programs and prisoners — comes from a man who once was himself a convict.

“We think protecting the public is best done by turning the prisoners into citizens,” said Bill Robinson, founder of Corrections Concepts Inc. “Today’s inmate is tomorrow’s neighbor.”

Robinson, who founded the not-for-profit prison ministry, said the idea is for Christian inmates to be rehabilitated before re-entering society.

The project has been approved by Wakita town officials, who also wish to see the first-ever Christian prison just outside their town.

“It has the support of he town and the county,” Robinson said.

He said the process has stalled at the legislative level, as lawmakers are concerned about the current state budget crunch.

“We’re waiting on the Legislature to determine if they want to tell Department of Corrections to do this and try this,” Robinson said.

He said one question needs to be asked of Oklahoma’s leaders: “What statutory, regulatory, budgetary or constitutional reason would you have for not entering into this understanding with Wakita in advance of construction?”



The proposed facility



The facility would be open to Christian inmates facing their last 12 to 30 months of incarceration before their earliest release date.

“Residents sign an agreement with the management that states they will participate in all programs and employment and their worship practices will not be impugned,” Robinson said.    

Inmates would work full time at private industries that operate inside the prison, receive job training and earn money, which would support their families, pay restitution to their victims, contribute to their own room and board and produce savings to be used upon their release.

Robinson said the facility will be owned by the town or the county, allowing those officials to contract directly with another government entity. The cost of housing an inmate is $42.80 a day, with annual increases tied to Consumer Price Index and other factors.

Each inmate receives a needs assessment for counseling, education, health care and marketable skill employment. Individualized programs are established to meet each inmate’s needs. Counseling is a minimum of three hours per week per resident, with a counselor to patient ratio of 1 to 24 at the proposed 600-bed facility.

Counseling covers drug and alcohol, family, sex or violence issues and offers therapy to meet an inmate’s dysfunctional needs. Educa-tion offered is basic literacy, allowing inmates to take high school equivalency, vocational and technical and college-level courses.

“What would you like to be the demeanor of the offender living next to you to be,” Robinson asked. “We’re not in the prison business, we’re in the restoration business.”

Robinson said the $42 million project would be financed through bonds, for which he already had an underwriter.

“There is no downside to Wakita, the state or anybody because it’s all private investment,” he said. “The bond holders are the only ones at risk.”



Businessman’s view



Dwight Bushman, a Wakita businessman who advises the town on economic development, said the town was behind having the prison.

“Absolutely, our town board is on it 100 percent,” he said, adding there may be some in town who do not understand the entire project and may be “nervous” about building the prison.

“There’s a lot of examples in the state of facilities in other towns, and they have very little problems,” he said. “The good outweighs the bad.”

He said state budget constraints may be holding back the project, but the costs could be met.

“A lot of what we’re going to do isn’t going to cost the state anything because its private,” Bushman said. “I know there are budget problems, but I think there’re ways around that.”



Benefits to the area



The benefits of the prison wouldn’t be felt in just Wakita, Bushman said.

“For this area it’s great. It looks like it would be a great influx of people,” he said. “Even for Grant County and Garfield County, it would be a phenomenal deal. It’d help Kay County and Alfalfa County. It would help the whole area.”

“If you look at us as an industry, the prison industry is drought-proof and recession-proof,” Robinson said. “The economic impact on a community is huge.”

Bushman said he believes the project will come to fruition.

“Some things go fast and some things so slow,” he said. “We do have some things developing, so it’s looking good.”

Robinson said he just wants to see the project come to life.

“We’re doing something that has never been done before in history,” Robinson said. “All I want is God to let me live long enough to know it happened.”