From GrandForksHerald:

A group of lawmakers has settled on a $67 million plan for new construction and remodeling at North Dakota’s state penitentiary after discarding proposals to spend three times that much to replace the prison.

The blueprint endorsed Thursday by the Legislature’s interim Correctional Facility Review Committee includes a new cell block, a medical clinic, new segregation cells for prisoners with disciplinary problems and an expanded orientation center for new inmates.

The penitentiary’s east cell house, which was built in 1910, would be demolished. The proposal would add 251 beds to the main state prison, increasing its capacity from 562 to 813 beds.

Leann Bertsch, director of the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, said the plan would meet the prison’s most pressing construction needs and provide a better environment for its workers.

Read the Rest…