New men’s prison in Elmore County to be named for Gov. Kay Ivey

Construction on the Governor Kay Ivey Correctional Complex in Elmore County – Photo from Alabama Department of Corrections

The new men’s prison that’s under construction in Elmore County will be called the “Governor Kay Ivey Correctional Complex.”

That announcement was made today by the State of Alabama and the Alabama Department of Corrections. The Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority recently passed a resolution naming the facility in the governor’s honor.

A state prison modernization plan was signed into law by Ivey in 2021.

The first phase of this plan includes the Governor Kay Ivey Correctional Complex, previously called the Elmore Specialized Men’s Facility. The facility is now approximately 47% complete with a targeted completion date of May of 2026.

The plan is for bed replacement, not the addition of new beds into the state’s prison system.

The state-of-the-art complex will provide enhanced medical and mental health services including substance abuse treatment, rehabilitative programming and vocational training.

It will have 54 buildings with 1.4 million square feet and will house 4,000 male inmates. The overall fenced area is 335 acres.

The enhanced medical and mental health services will include:

• 720 medical complex beds to include acute medical, general infirmary, nursing home/memory care, mental health and stabilization
•  Confidential treatment space for mental healthcare
•  Programming space for structured out-of-cell activities such as dayrooms, classroom space and outdoor recreation areas

Bed space is designed for maximum flexibility and additional beds may be used for mental health capacity if needed. The current plan is for 256 medium custody beds for mental health purposes.

The utility requirements for a facility this large are extensive. Substantial construction has been completed on the one million gallon water tank, which will provide an independent water source. It will also have a conditioned air environment, a sanitary sewer lift station and emergency power generation sufficient to run the basic operations of the complex.

Staffing is a critical piece of the modernization plan and the design of this Corrections Complex will support a reduction of burden on staff resources. For example, the new facility will have 71% cells to 29% dorms, which controls inmate movement.

The current state facility cell-to-dorm ratio is 18% cells to 82% dorms. Additionally, sight lines are maximized for inmate observation and overall building functionality will be more efficient. This new Corrections Complex will create a safer, more secure environment for inmates and security personnel allowing the ADOC to better recruit and retain professional staff, prison officials say.

The breakdown of the 4,000 beds:

Minimum Security 1,168
Medium Security 1,536
Maximum Security 192
Medical / Mental Health 720
Intake 384

A facility in Escambia County is also authorized in phase one of the legislation and is in the planning stage. Site work for the new Escambia Men’s Facility has included limited demolition of structures on the new  site, which is adjacent to Fountain Correctional Facility. Consistent with the bed-replacement intent of the legislation, Fountain will be demolished.

The legislation also includes provisions supporting the participation of minority business enterprises in all phases of the work. The ADOC has established a Minority Vendor Program to support minority businesses in  competing for various parts of the overall project. 

— Information from the Alabama Department of Corrections