LAWRENCEVILLE—
Most people don't want a prison in their backyard, but people who live in one Virginia county say they can't live without theirs.Hundreds of people fearing for their livelihoods took their pleas straight to lawmakers Thursday night, telling them Lawrenceville needs the jobs at Brunswick Correctional Facility.
Governor Tim Kaine plans to close the prison by November 10th as a part of state wide budget cuts.
In the small Brunswick community of just 18,000 where things are normally quiet, voices got loud Thursday night. A commonwealth's attorney exclaimed, "I've been in a lot of facilities in the state that are not as well run as Brunswick Correctional Facility, so pick a fight with someone else Governor Kaine!"
In a packed auditorium, more than 600 southside Virginia residents voiced bitter concerns over Kaine's decision to close the Brunswick prison, an employer to over 400 citizens. Lawrenceville Mayor Douglas Pond argued, "Why are we always taking a hit in Lawrenceville? We're always kicked to the curb, that's how we feel down here."
In a county with an 11% unemployment rate, state senators, delegates, and county leaders argued closing the facility would not only devastate prison employees, but Lawrenceville's small business community and infrastructure as well.
Sheriff Brian Roberts says the Governor's plan is a double calamity because it not only forces the prison to close, but it also asks the counties of Mecklenburg, Dinwiddie and Brunswick to purchase the 40-year-old building as a regional jail, killing their plans for a new one.
Sheriff Brian Roberts, "We're not going to buy it, so Governor Kaine is not going to have $22 million coming in. Where is the cost-savings when all these people are unemployed?"
Residents say they're ready for a fight even though their opponent is the governor they voted for.
