One struggling Weld County town may get an economic boost thanks to a women’s prison, while another community is canceling plans to bring in a similar facility.
Voters in Hudson – home to about 1,200 people about 30 miles northeast of Denver – decided Tuesday night to rezone about 320 acres northwest of town for a women’s lockup. Plans call for an 832-bed facility.
The annexation and rezoning proposal passed 135-63, a good turnout for the town, which has 629 registered voters. “It was one of the best turnouts in a long time,” Town Clerk Judy Larson said.
Proponents said the prison – to be run by Houston-based Cornell Cos. – would pump $27.5 million into a town with dirt roads and a tiny local economy.
Opponents said the projections were overblown and the prison would ruin the town’s down-home image. A majority of residents, however, thought otherwise, Mayor Neal Pontius said.
Meanwhile, the Colorado Department of Corrections has rescinded its offer to GEO Group to build a 1,500-bed men’s prison in Ault, north of Greeley.
The deal fell apart late last month over financial disagreements, including GEO’s insistence on a bed guarantee, said Department of Corrections spokeswoman Alison Morgan.
GEO entered into a tentative agreement with Ault, population 1,500, last spring, but many residents were opposed.
Ault Mayor Brad Bayne said he was disappointed with the state’s decision.
Staff writer Monte Whaley can be reached at 720-929-0907 or mwhaley@denverpost.com.
