Tag: prison relocation

Jim Dunnigan and the Prison

Concerns about the prison relocation began as far back as 2013. City Weekly reported fears of conflicts of interest regarding unlocking land for development and connections to Sen. Niederhauser, who stood to profit from the prison relocation. As discussions continued over the following years, public comment was not considered during prison meetings, and a 2015 poll

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More questions in prison relocation scheme

A few months ago, it looked as though the prison move was pretty much a done deal. But the last few weeks have made it look a little less of a sure thing. At the initial meeting where the prison relocation commission, made up primarily of legislators, announced their top six sites, protesters from Eagle

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In our opinion: Deseret News on Better UTAH

Our efforts to bring balance and transparency to the Draper Prison move is starting to pay off. We were pleasantly surprised to wake up Sunday morning and read that the Deseret News Editorial Board has endorsed our position on the Draper Prison relocation bid. One close observer and critic of the prison relocation process is Maryann Martindale,

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Concerns remain as prison board seeks public comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, October 22, 2013 Salt Lake City — The Utah board tasked with determining whether the state prison should be moved from its current location is seeking public comment at its regular meeting Wednesday afternoon. Officials with the Alliance for a Better UTAH, a progressive political advocacy group, delivered a letter to

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Private prisons coming to Utah?

This is the last in a series of blog posts exploring the inner workings of PRADA – Utah’s Prison Relocation and Development Authority. Check out the first, second and third posts, too. Get ready, Utah! You’re about to get screwed. Up until last week, I wasn’t quite sure where this prison relocation debacle was headed. But

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Prison Relocation: PRADA Ignoring the Present

This is the third in a series of blog posts exploring the inner workings of PRADA – Utah’s Prison Relocation and Development Authority. Listening to PRADA talk about the proposed prison relocation is a lot like looking through a pinhole. Through the pinhole, you see the prison, in isolation, sitting on high-value Draper real estate.

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Prison Relocation: PRADA Ignoring the Past

This is the second in a series of blog posts exploring the inner workings of PRADA – Utah’s Prison Relocation and Development Authority. Most of the public seems to be under the impression that PRADA is “looking into whether to move the prison.” You know, finding out, on the public’s behalf: whether the project would

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Prison relocation “discussion” is happening in a vacuum

This is the first in a series of blog posts exploring the inner workings of PRADA – Utah’s Prison Relocation and Development Authority. The media spotlight is squarely planted on the John Swallow debacle, so you might not know that there’s another excellent dog-and-pony show going on at the Capitol this summer. The Legislature-mandated and

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Who the Legislature really represents

Maryann Martindale, executive director for Better UTAH, argued in a recent editorial in the Salt Lake Tribune that the state legislature consistently chooses the interests of industry over the interests of individual Utahns. Citizens emerged far from victorious. This year, the subtle divide in the Utah Legislature was between industry and individuals. And, unfortunately, for

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Better UTAH Beat Episode 39 – March 5, 2013

The following is the transcript from this week’s Better UTAH Beat. It aired on March 5, 2013. ——– Cui bono? It is a latin phrase the great Roman orator and politician Cicero used when considering a piece of legislation. Translated, the phrase reads: Who benefits? And it is a question that should be asked over

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