Forum: General

Thread (Discussion): Portland jail empty, despite rise in crime

PORTLAND — It may be one of the prettiest jails ever built.

A long driveway circles past a modern-art sculpture on the front lawn. The main building looks like a manor, with pink stucco and glass tile on the outside. The interior motif leans heavily toward pastels. Vaulted ceilings and open-air corridors suggest the design principles of feng shui.

The Wapato Facility, in the city's northern outskirts, took $59 million and two years to construct. But in the nearly two years since its completion — as Portland has struggled with a crime surge — not a single inmate has set foot in the building.

Multnomah County, in charge of Portland jails, can't afford to open it.

"We held a ceremony, cut the ribbon — then locked the doors," said Sheriff Bernie Giusto, who attended the dedication in summer 2004. "We have a brand-new jail sitting here empty, and I don't have a good answer when the public asks me, 'Why was it built if there was no plan to operate it?'

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