Speaker Corey Johnson Image Credit: CityLand

After modifications and a lengthy Stated Meeting, Borough Based Jails passed despite significant opposition. On October 17, 2019, the City Council voted to approve the City’s Borough Based Jails System application with modifications. The approved plan includes four jail facilities located at 124-125 White Street in Manhattan, 745 East 141st Street in the Bronx, 126-02 82nd Avenue in Queens and at 275 Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn and closure of the Rikers Island detention facility.

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Members of public protesting proposed Manhattan facility. Image Credit: John McCarten/City Council

Council received extensive testimony and differing perspectives on Borough Based Jails. On September 5, 2019, City Council’s Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting and Maritime Uses held a public hearing regarding the City’s application to close Rikers Island and create a Borough Based Jail System. The proposed sites are 124-125 White Street in Manhattan, 745 East 141^St Street in the Bronx, 126-02 82^nd Avenue in Queens and at 275 Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn.

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Efforts to reduce violence at Rikers begin to show success. On September 19, 2017, the Department of Corrections reported that, since 2014, Corrections has seen a significant drop in serious assaults on staff, serious injury to inmates, and use of force. (read more…)