Ojibway closing ranked as top story

Editor's note: In the past several days, the Daily Globe has been counting down the top five stories of 2018. The fifth and final story today is about the Dec. 1 closing of the Ojibway Correctional Facility in Marenisco. Number 2 was the Feb. 21 downtown Ironwood fire. Number 3 was the Ironwood Township embezzlement case. Number 4 centered on events surrounding the murder of Wayne Valliere, Jr. in the Mercer, Wis., area a year ago. Number 5 addressed the recently passed three-year ambulance millage in Gogebic County.

By P.J. GLISSON

[email protected]

Marenisco - At the start of last summer, state legislators revealed that their 2019 fiscal budget would require one of 30 prisons operated by the Michigan Department of Corrections to close its doors.

When Gov. Rick Snyder signed the budget on June 21, the specific prison still had not been named, but officials in this region already knew that Ojibway Correctional Facility in Marenisco was on the short list of state targets.

As a result, area politicians, business owners, educators and others joined forces to make a valiant and concerted effort to convince the state to spare this region such a significant economic blow. Local persons of power even intended to travel in force to present their case at the state capital this past September.

Those plans became moot when MDOC declared on Aug. 14 it would close OCF on Dec. 1. The announcement shocked local citizens, not only because they had hoped to prevail in saving the prison, but also because they had not expected the state to decide until the end of the year.

Nevertheless, the local effort to preserve OCF gathered even more momentum. Resistance came in many forms; including resolutions of support from local governments, as well as a flurry of letters, calls, fundraisers, signs, demonstrations, and a dedicated committee and Facebook page site.

Lawsuit filed

On behalf of Marenisco Township, Lansing attorney Sean Gallagher filed a lawsuit against MDOC, claiming it had not undertaken any formal economic impact study before making its decision to close OCF. MDOC claimed it was not required to do a formal study, but that it had looked at the matter informally and weighed in favor of "the long-term operational needs of the department."

Ultimately, the suit was dismissed on Nov. 28 when Court of Claims Judge Stephen Borrello in Lansing said the township didn't have a strong enough case.

Meanwhile, the state had been quickly relocating prisoners and preparing the vast facility to close on time, just three and one-half months after it had announced its intentions.

Just before the closing date, MDOC spokesman Chris Gautz told the Globe more than 800 OCF prisoners, as well as three-quarters of about 200 employees, had been transferred to other state prisons. Gautz said about 50 former OCF employees preferred to be laid off rather than move.

The prison compound at N. 5705 Ojibway Road, off M-64, now stands empty after gradually growing over the past 47 years of its history here. It began as Camp Ojibway in 1971 and became an official prison in 2000.

Surrounded by chain-link fence topped with razor wire, the property includes an administration building, a store, a warehouse, and facilities for education, medical care, meals and training. It also has five housing units with a capacity for 1,180 prisoners,

The minimum security prison for men also was unique in having its own water tower and sewer system. In addition, it featured a program in which prisoners trained dogs within their own cells for adoption via HOPE animal shelter in Ironwood or the Chequamegon Humane Association in Ashland.

Gautz said the state will maintain and winterize the facility for as long as its retains ownership. He added, however, the goal is to sell the property as soon as possible.

MDOC claims OCF was one of its most expensive Level I facilities to run, costing 8 percent more than other similar prisons. The state also claimed the facility needed $3.7 million in improvements over the next five years, including relining of wastewater lagoons and a lot of new roofing.

What now?

On the brighter side, Gogebic County has received other good economic news in recent weeks:

-Highland Copper Company, Inc. now has a local office in Wakefield and is moving forward with intentions to operate a mine in this region, with potential to employ several hundred workers in both construction and mining phases.

-The state budget also includes several million dollars to renovate Copper Peak, to help Waupaca Foundry, Inc. to open an Ironwood location, to fund Gogebic Community College's creation of a skilled trades facility, and to add several local jobs via the state Department of Natural Resources.

-In addition, the city of Bessemer received a $21 million grant and loan package for sewer and water work from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Still, Wakefield city manager Richard Brackney said local officials hoped any new blessings would be "a boon," whereas he added, "Now, we're just treading water."

He added that the prison closure goes beyond mere economics. "The really unfortunate loss for the city of Wakefield is the loss of so many of our younger citizens. We're losing the future." He said that includes community spirit via volunteerism.

Nevertheless, he added gamely that the county now needs "a united front," perhaps in the way of a formal economic group. Rather than try to market the OCF property only to large-scale industrial interests, Brackney said local officials should consider the possibility of promoting its potential as a cluster development with room for several different operations.

Closure on closing

Marenisco Township supervisor Dick Bouvette used his December newsletter to thank the public for its "financial and emotional support" in relation to the prison cause. "To say that I'm disappointed is an understatement," he noted.

Regarding the failed lawsuit, Bouvette told the Globe, "We filed an appeal on Dec. 14 and have heard nothing since then." His understanding is that a response may not occur for months.

According to MDOC, declining prison populations throughout the state have led to more than 20 prisons closing since 2005. They include locations in Iron River, Manistique, Shingleton, Painesdale and Kincheloe.

The closest prison is now about 100 miles away in Baraga. Remaining U.P. prisons are in Marquette, Munising, Newberry and Kinross.

MDOC claims it will save $19 million in the first year OCF is closed, but that is no comfort to local citizens who lost one of their biggest employers and have watched many former OCF employees either (a) leave the region with their families or (b) leave their families here for extended periods of separation while they take positions in other U.P. prisons.

Whether taken from a passionate or pragmatic point of view, those transitions are not easy. As Crystal Suzik of Ramsay said at a September spaghetti benefit, the fight to keep the prison was mostly about community: "What we're saying is we matter."

Now, closing out the year, as well as the prison's legacy, is a sad but tender good-by on the WELCOME sign of the Wakefield's Visitors and Information Center. It reads "RIP OJIBWAY!" with echoed sentiments from two small, white, handwritten signs posted upon it. One reads "RIP Ojibway - you'll be missed." The other says simply, "Thank you!!" One message includes a simple drawing of a sad face.