GRAND SLAMMER MEGA JAIL EXPANSION PLAN
MEGA JAIL PLAN HAS LARA LOCALS WORRIED
LARA’S Prison Precinct will be expanded as part of a State Government plan to deal with swelling prison populations, creating hundreds of local jobs.
The State Government announced yesterday it would purchase land to significantly expand the Lara Prison Precinct — home to the maximum security Barwon Prison.
It has not yet been revealed how much the project will cost taxpayers or when it will begin, with some residents voicing concerns there had not been enough community consultation before the move.
State Corrections Minister Gayle Tierney said the expansion would be roughly double the size of Barwon Prison, and would help house an expected increase in prison population after the recruitment of more police officers and implementation of tougher sentencing and bail laws.
“Planning for growth in the prison population is what good governments do — this expansion will keep our prison system effective and our community safe,” Ms Tierney said.
“We know that our investments in more police and tougher sentencing will result in more people spending time behind bars — we’re planning for that growth now.
“This helps fix the mess left by the Liberals, who failed to tackle the chronic overcrowding in our prison system.”
More details about the expansion will be announced in the State Budget, she said.
Township of Lara Care Group president Barry White said there was community concern that there had not been enough consultation with residents, and that Lara was becoming a prison centre.
“I’m most concerned that we haven’t been advised about it, given the size,” Mr White said. “We need to know more about it.
“We are trying to protect the character of Lara, which is becoming known basically as a prison centre. “That isn’t good.” Mr White also said there was community concern the prison expansion was being “dumped” in Lara because it is considered a safe Labor seat.
“I think we’re getting a little bit sick of the fact that a lot of the corrections systems are actually being placed on the west side of Melbourne and here in Lara,” he said.
But, Lara state Labor MP John Eren said the expansion would create “massive jobs boost” for Lara during construction and once the new facilities were up and running.
“We’re talking about hundreds of new jobs for locals — both during construction and ongoing,” Mr Eren said.
“We want to see people from the region applying for these jobs when they come online, and we’ll be encouraging them to do so.”
The construction of the state’s latest prison, Ravenhall Correctional Centre, supported almost 1500 jobs during construction and now employs 700 staff.
The prison expansion was announced on the same day policing statistics from the independent Productivity Commission showed 11 per cent of Victorians felt unsafe at home alone at night.
The survey of 8100 Victorians also found less than half of respondents felt safe when walking alone in their neighbourhood at night.
‘I’m most concerned that we haven’t been advised about it, given the size. We need to know more about it.’ – TOWNSHIP OF LARA CARE GROUP PRESIDENT BARRY WHITE (pictured)