June 11, 2015

Utah State Legislature

Attn: Prison Relocation Commission
350 North State
Salt Lake City, Utah 84114
RE: Joint Statement of Opposition to the Prison Relocation.
Dear Commissioners,
You have now heard from each of our community leaders and many of our residents regarding the
proposed construction of a new prison close to our homes. We have all listed the various and substantial
reasons why the prison should not be relocated to any of the short list relocation sites. We are compelled
to no longer give you reasons why we think it should not be in our back yard, but instead be moved to our
neighboring cities backyard. Rather, we all are united in stating that the prison does not need to be
relocated any farther than the 680 vacant acres adjacent to the current facility.
We believe that if a new prison is necessary, then more time and effort needs to be exerted to study and
evaluate the possibility of rebuilding adjacent to the current prison. Once complete the current prison can
be reclaimed to grassland for future prison needs. Per your relocation report, the required acreage is
between 400 and 600 acres. We understand there is adequate acreage to build a new prison on the existing
site. (See the attached photograph of the existing prison site.)
Specifically, we believe a decision to relocate the State prison from the current site in Draper to another
location is premature for the following reasons:
1. There has been no attempt to compare the cost and benefits of relocating the prison, to the costs
and benefits of rebuilding the prison on the existing site in Draper. The State prison relocation
consultant has studied the projected costs and the projected economic impact of rebuilding the
prison on a new site. Each of the potential sites has been evaluated and scored on a specific list
of factors to determine the suitability of that site for a new prison. However, no one has
evaluated the current prison site in Draper based upon those same factors. No one has attempted
to evaluate the projected costs and the projected economic impact of rebuilding the prison on the
vacant Sate owned land adjacent to the existing prison in Draper. Without conducting such a
comparative study, it is premature for the State Legislature to decide whether or not to move the
prison because we do not yet know if rebuilding the prison on site would produce greater benefits
than relocating the prison to a new site.
2. There has been no attempt to quantify how much of the projected economic benefits that would
result from the redevelopment of the existing prison site would occur even if the prison is not
moved. The Consultants report projects that the redevelopment of the current prison site will
generate approximately $1.8 billion in economic activity on the prison site. However, the
Consultants report fails to evaluate how much of that economic growth will occur regardless of
whether or not the prison is moved, and how much of that economic growth would only occur if
the prison is relocated. Until that analysis is conducted, it is impossible for the State Legislature
to determine the true economic impact of moving the prison.

3. The economic projections of future tax revenue do not identify how much tax revenue would be
paid to the State, as opposed to other local taxing entities. The Consultants report acknowledges
that it will cost substantially more to relocate the prison than to rebuild it on the existing site. The
report also projects that the redevelopment of the current prison site will generate approximately
$94.6 million in annual tax revenues paid to State and local governments. However, the report
does not identify how much of those tax revenues will be paid to the State. Without knowing
how much future tax revenue will be paid to the State, as opposed to other local taxing entities, it
is impossible to determine if the State will ever recoup the increased cost of relocating the prison
to a new site.
For these reasons, the decision to relocate the prison is premature, and should be postponed until these
issues can be adequately addressed and considered by the State Legislature and the public. Without doing
so, the public will continue to believe that the reasons stated for relocating the State prison are merely a
justification created to support a decision already made for other reasons.
We believe that after the commission has spent their due diligence researching the current site they will
find the infrastructure, travel and staffing costs are far lower and already in place compared to the
potential short list sites listed in the relocation report.
Please respect the opinion of the taxpayers and constituents of the State of Utah and consider the use of
the existing site for a new prison. Salt Lake City has already proven that a new airport expansion can be
built on the same site as the current airport while it is in use. Why cant a new prison be built adjacent to
an existing one and eliminate expensive infrastructure costs and personnel/volunteer relocations?

Sincerely, Mayors,
Ralph Becker, Salt Lake City
Christopher Pengra, Eagle Mountain
Brent Marshall, Grantsville
Jaren Hancock (Mayor, pro temper), Fairfield
Jim Miller, Saratoga Springs
Patrick Dunlavy, Tooele
Howard Anderson, Cedar Fort