Since the mid-nineteenth century, Americans have known the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York as a site of industrial production, a place to heal from disease, and a sprawling outdoor playground that must be preserved in its wild state. Less well known, however, has been the area's role in hosting a network of state and federal prisons. A Prison in the Woods traces the planning, construction, and operation of penitentiaries in five Adirondack Park communities from the 1840s through the early 2000s to demonstrate that the histories of mass incarceration and environmental consciousness are interconnected. Clarence Jefferson Hall Jr. reveals that the introduction of correctional facilities -- especially in the last three decades of the twentieth century -- unearthed long-standing conflicts over the proper uses of Adirondack nature, particularly since these sites have contributed to deforestation, pollution, and habitat decline, even as they've provided jobs and spurred economic growth. Additionally, prison plans have challenged individuals' commitment to environmental protection, tested the strength of environmental regulations, endangered environmental and public health, and exposed tensions around race, class, place, and belonging in the isolated prison towns of America's largest state park.

The Fed. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is responsible for the custody and care of more than 201,000 fed. offenders. To provide housing for these prisoners, BOP manages the construction and maintenance of its prison facilities and oversees contract facilities. This report looks into recent increases in estimated costs for Fed. Correctional Institution construction projects in Mendota, CA; Berlin, NH; and McDowell, WV, which have led to almost $278 million or 62% more being provided in funding than initially estimated. This report addresses: (1) the reasons for the changes to the estimated costs; and (2) the actions BOP has taken -- or plans to take -- to control future cost increases and delays. Includes recommendations. Charts and tables.

Now more than ever, we need to understand the social, political, and economic shifts that have driven the United States to triple its prison construction in just over three decades. John Eason goes a very considerable distance here in fulfilling this need, not by detailing the aftereffects of building huge numbers of prisons, but by vividly showing the process by which a community seeks to get a prison built in their area. What prompted him to embark on this inquiry was the insistent question of why the rapid expansion of prisons in America, why now, and why so many. He quickly learned that the prison boom is best understood from the perspective of the rural, southern towns where they tend to be placed (North Carolina has twice as many prisons as New Jersey, though both states have the same number of prisoners). And so he sets up shop, as it were, in Forrest City, Arkansas, where he moved with his family to begin the splendid fieldwork that led to this book. A major part of his story deals with the emergence of the rural ghetto, abetted by white flight, de-industrialization, the emergence of public housing, and higher proportions of blacks and Latinos. How did Forrest City become a site for its prison? Eason takes us behind the decision-making scenes, tracking the impact of stigma (a prison in my backyard-not a likely desideratum), economic development, poverty, and race, while showing power-sharing among opposed groups of elite whites vs. black race leaders. Eason situates the prison within the dynamic shifts rural economies are undergoing, and shows how racially diverse communities can achieve the siting and building of prisons in their rural ghetto. The result is a full understanding of the ways in which a prison economy takes shape and operates."

This book is the first national history of the building of some of Ireland's most important historic public buildings. Focusing on the former assize courthouses and county gaols, it tells a political history of how they were built, who paid for them, and the effects they had on urban development in Ireland. Using extensive archival sources, it delves in unprecedented detail into the politics and personalities of county grand jurors, Protestant landed society, government prison inspectors, charities, architects, and engineers, who together oversaw a wave of courthouse and prison construction in Ireland in an era of turbulent domestic and international change. It investigates the extent to which these buildings can be seen as the legacy of the British or imperial state, especially after the Act of Union, and thus contributes to ongoing debates within post-colonial studies regarding the built environment. Richly illustrated with over 300 historic drawings, photographs and maps, this book analyses how and why these historic buildings came to exist. It discusses crime, violence and political and agrarian unrest in Ireland during the years when Protestant elites commissioned such extensive new public architecture. The book will be of interest to academic and popular audiences curious to learn more about Irish politics, culture, society and especially its rich architectural heritage.

Since 1980, the number of people in U.S. prisons has increased more than 450%. Despite a crime rate that has been falling steadily for decades, California has led the way in this explosion, with what a state analyst called "the biggest prison building project in the history of the world." Golden Gulag provides the first detailed explanation for that buildup by looking at how political and economic forces, ranging from global to local, conjoined to produce the prison boom. In an informed and impassioned account, Ruth Wilson Gilmore examines this issue through statewide, rural, and urban perspectives to explain how the expansion developed from surpluses of finance capital, labor, land, and state capacity. Detailing crises that hit California’s economy with particular ferocity, she argues that defeats of radical struggles, weakening of labor, and shifting patterns of capital investment have been key conditions for prison growth. The results—a vast and expensive prison system, a huge number of incarcerated young people of color, and the increase in punitive justice such as the "three strikes" law—pose profound and troubling questions for the future of California, the United States, and the world. Golden Gulag provides a rich context for this complex dilemma, and at the same time challenges many cherished assumptions about who benefits and who suffers from the state’s commitment to prison expansion.

RSMeans Cost Data RSMeans Cost Data for Students RSMeans Cost Data, Student Edition provides a thorough introduction to cost estimating in a self-contained print and online package. With clear explanations and a hands-on, example-driven approach, it is the ideal reference for students and new professionals who need to learn how to perform cost estimating for building construction. Features include: Commercial and residential construction cost data in print and online formats Complete how-to guidance on the essentials of cost estimating A supplemental website with plans, specifications, problem sets, and a full sample estimate With more than 930 Location Factors in the United States and Canada, the data includes up-to-date system prices for more than 100 standard assemblies and in-place costs for thousands of alternates—making it easy to customize budget estimates and compare system costs. UNIT PRICES (organized in MasterFormatTM 2010) 1 General Requirements 2 Existing Conditions 3 Concrete 4 Masonry 5 Metals 6 Woods, Plastics & Composites 7 Thermal & Moisture Protection 8 Openings 9 Finishes 10 Specialties 11 Equipment 12 Furnishings 13 Special Construction 14 Conveying Equipment 21 Fire Suppression 22 Plumbing 23 Heating, Ventilating & Air Conditioning 26 Electrical 27 Communications 28 Electronic Safety & Security 31 Earthwork 32 Exterior Improvements 33 Utilities ASSEMBLIES A Substructure B Shell C Interiors D Services E Equipment & Furnishings F Special Construction G Building Site Work REFERENCE INFORMATION Equipment Rental Costs Crews Cost Indexes Reference Tables Square Foot Costs RSMeans is the leading source of cost data for construction in North America. Visit rsmeans.com to learn more.

Originally published: Syracuse, N.Y.: Prison Research Education Action Project, 1976.