201 2

Profit from potentialMat-Su Borough renewable

economy booming, too

C Section

Sunday, July 29, 2012

PAGE C2 SUNDAY, JULY 29, 2012 FRONTIERSMAN.COM

BY JEREMIAH BARTZFrontiersman.com

MAT-SU — Some may have once seen Mat-Su towns as a pit stop on the way to or from the larger community of Anchorage. But thanks to exponential growth and new availability of resources, the Valley is becoming a preferred stop.

State-of-the-art medical facili-ties, new businesses and rapid development in the retail and ser-vices industries have transformed the Mat-Su from a bedroom com-munity with the lure of outdoor flair to an area built to serve a vari-ety of interests.

The Valley has become more than a destination for out-of-state tourists. Residents from across Alaska now have reasons to visit the Valley. Part of that change is due to the rising number of sporting events hosted by Valley schools, teams and venues.

“All of the growth and devel-opment continue to lead to a more positive visitor experi-ence,” Mat-Su Convention and Visitors Bureau Marketing and Communications Manager Casey Ressler said. “With that positive visitor experience, people tell their friends, and we see a return visit based on that.”

In addition to the introduc-tion of major retail outlets such as Target, Lowe’s and The Home Depot, and restaurant chains like Red Robin and IHOP, major sports complexes have also been built in the Valley in recent years. The Curtis D. Menard Memorial Sports Center in Wasilla, the MTA Events Center in Palmer and the AT&T Sports Center are all less than 10 years old. Each is regu-larly home to a variety of sporting events, which draw participants and fans from across the state.

The Valley is also now home to state-of-the-art artificial turf football and soccer fields. Con-struction began in May at Palmer High and Colony High to upgrade

athletic facilities at those schools. There are plans in place to begin similar upgrades at Wasilla High and Houston High within the near future.

The combination of new busi-ness and sporting venues have made the Valley an attractive place to host major events.

“With more quality venues, there’s a lot more opportunity to bring in large events,” Ressler said. “When more large events are held in the community, it leads to more direct and indirect spending. It contributes to the sales tax, the bed tax, and helps put dollars into the hands of private business owners.”

Since the Menard Center opened its doors March 6, 2004, the facility has hosted a number of Alaska Schools Activities Asso-ciation high school state tourna-ments. The ASAA state hockey and volleyball tournaments were at the Menard during the 2011-12 school year and will be featured at the facility that sits at the end of South Mack Road in 2012-13. The ASAA state large-schools and small-schools wrestling tourna-ment have also been hosted by the Menard in the past.

And those are just the prep state tournaments sanctioned by Alaska’s governing body for high school sports. Regular season prep hockey games are a staple on the schedule of the facility’s Curtis C. Menard II Memorial Ice Arena. Local youth and adult organiza-tions also host regular season games and tournaments. Many of the tournaments attract teams from outside the Valley.

One business that’s benefited greatly from the influx of visi-tors generated by sporting events is Grandview Inn and Suites in

Wasilla. “Absolutely. It’s a wonderful

thing. Sports teams from all over the state stay with us, all the dif-ferent sports,” Grandview general manager Sandra Joynes said.

Joynes said Menard Center officials regularly send business Grandview’s way, and the inn — which includes five styles of suites and a restaurant — caters to sports teams traveling to the Valley, offering special rates.

Joynes said the Grandview, which opened in 2004, has seen a significant increase in business the last two years.

“Three years ago we really start-ed getting in the teams. The last two years have been some of the busiest for us in the winter as far as team sports,” Joynes said.

Business from the sports teams has helped the hotel stay very busy during the winter, she said.

“We seem to do better in the winter than the summer. Some people are shocked by that state-ment,” Joynes said. “Sports is real-ly big and does really well for us.”

Joynes said she is excited for the possibility of more major sporting events coming to the Valley in the future. With the addition of turf at Colony and Palmer, it’s likely ASAA state football, track and field or soccer tournaments could find a home in the Valley. Colony High activities director Mike Boyd said he hopes to see CHS have the chance to host events in coming years.

“Absolutely. We’d certainly love to bring this stuff to the Valley,” Boyd said.

In addition to the Valley’s retail, restaurants and lodging that could serve fans, this community still maintains the small-town atmo-

sphere many fans appreciate, Boyd said.

“There’s just a little bit more of a Friday Night Lights deal here,” Boyd said. “And it’ll certainly be good for the economy in the Val-ley.”

Boyd said Valley schools have had success hosting major high school events at Valley venues, and sometimes the Mat-Su pro-vides a nice alternative to Anchor-age or Fairbanks.

“Those kids get to go somewhere different,” Boyd said. “Coming to the Valley is going somewhere new.”

Brad Hanson, a Palmer High assistant football coach and mem-ber of the Palmer City Council, said he believes an event, such as state football, will find its way to the Valley in the future.

“I think Valley schools, Wasilla, Palmer, Colony, whomever, have a great history of bidding (and host-ing) activities. Palmer has hosted state track and cross-country for years and years. With Wasilla hosting hockey, it’s logical for one of us to step up and do football,” Hanson said.

Hanson said the introduction could make a great positive impact on the community.

“It’s a great economic engine for our community,” Hanson said, noting the construction of the turf facilities should lead to an increase in local business and potentially the introduction of new business.

Hanson said before the MTA Events Center, the building for-merly known as the Palmer Ice Arena, opened in 2005, there was talk of bringing an international event to the area.

“For a number of years as we were looking at building an ice rink there was talk about the Arc-tic Winter Games and the ability for the Valley to host the Winter Games. At that point we didn’t have the facilities to pull that off,”

I can help you get the coverage you need.People who switched to Allstate saved money and got moreprotection. Which means they’re better prepared for themayhem that can happen everywhere. So don’t wait! Call metoday.

Cindi Heal Agency(907) 746 0505Mile 3.2 Palmer-Wasilla HwyPalmercindiheal@allstate.com

Coverage and savings based on policy features selected and are subject to terms,conditions and availability. Allstate Property and Casualty Insurance Company, AllstateFire And Casualty Insurance Company: Northbrook, IL. © 2010 Allstate InsuranceCompany

XN

LV40980

Pit stop to preferred stopLocal sports venues help draw visitors, dollars to the Valley

‘Three years ago we really started getting in the teams. The last two years have been some of the busiest for us in the winter as far as team sports.’

—Sandra Joynes, Grandview Inn general manager

See VENUES, Page C4

ROBERT DeBERRY/FrontiersmanWorkers with Beyond the Turf place the ‘H’ on ‘Knights’ in the end zone of the football field at Colony High School. The Palmer High School field at Machetanz Stadium is also getting artificial field turf to be ready for the upcoming football season.

ROBERT DeBERRY/Frontiersman file photoThe MTA Events Center in Palmer is home to Palmer High School hockey and has undergone major improvements over the past two years to expand with plans to host other sporting and regional recreation events.

The Susitna-Watana Hydroelectric Project will provide affordable, renew-able energy to Alaskans for the next century.

A diverse mix of energy sources, including renew-able energy, is important to Alaska’s future. The Leg-islature recently adopted the goal that 50 percent of Alaska’s electrical genera-tion will be from renewable sources by 2025.

Through the Renewable Energy Fund, the Alaska Energy Authority has invested more than $200 million in 200 renewable energy projects. AEA will continue to promote wind, hydropower, solar and geothermal energy projects throughout Alaska, includ-ing the Railbelt. However, these projects alone will not be sufficient to meet future energy needs.

AEA identified large hydro as critical to meeting future power generation needs. Subsequently, two large hydro projects were analyzed for feasibility: Susitna and Chakachamna. The Susitna option was superior based on envi-ronmental risk, cost and licensing probability.

Many Alaskans remem-ber the multi-dam Susitna hydro project from the 1980s. In contrast, the current Susitna-Watana Hydroelectric Project is a single dam and is scaled to more accurately meet the electrical energy needs of the Railbelt. In 2011, the Alaska Legislature unani-mously passed Senate Bill 42, enabling AEA to move forward with licensing.

Hydro provides reliable power to the electrical grid and has potential to complement other energy sources, like the existing Bradley Lake Hydro facil-ity, and the Eva Creek and Fire Island wind projects. The Susitna-Watana Hydroelectric Project is one element of Alaska’s energy portfolio that includes a diverse mix of energy sources essential to the state’s energy future.

Economic opportunity

Energy costs are consis-tently ranked as a primary concern of residents and business owners.

Alaska has a strong track record of successful hydro projects providing long-term, stable rates, which translates into community viability and economic development. Affordable power is a necessary com-ponent of development projects such as mines, ports, ore processing plants, refineries and sea-food processing.

Bradley Lake Hydroelec-tric Project, near Homer, was commissioned in 1991 and continues to provide the Railbelt’s lowest rates. Southeast Alaska depends heavily on hydropower. Kodiak has a successful model of a mix of hydro and wind power; as a result, the city of Kodiak operates on nearly 90 per-cent renewable energy.

The probable construc-tion cost of the Susitna-Watana Hydroelectric Project is estimated to be $4.3 billion. This estimate will be refined as factors like dam height, type, methods of construction and materials are deter-mined. Recovery of this investment is anticipated over the long-term through the sale of energy to local utilities.

BIG PICTURE

By Susan Bell

Meeting Alaska’s energy needs

See BELL, Page C4

FRONTIERSMAN.COM SUNDAY, JULY 29, 2012 PAGE C3

Membership Lunch Every Tuesday

Historical Railroad Station in Wasilla 376-1299 - www.wasillachamber.org

373-2560

Someone’s going to win a new car might as well be you!!!!

XN

LV408

80

XNLV41119

Clearance SaleSpring & Summer

Clothing, Accessories,Bedding & Tabletop

25% to 50% Savings

Community infrastruc-ture developments in the Mat-Su Valley not only add to the quality of life here, they also help attract visitors from nontraditional demo-graphics.

Projects such as the Mat-Su Borough Assembly’s new meeting facility, a proposed facility at the Hatcher Pass Nordic Center and a new theater at Mat-Su College will all help attract a dif-ferent kind of user to the Valley.

“Infrastructure develop-ment adds to and enhances what we already have in the area, giving visitors a more positive experience,” said Bonnie Quill, Mat-Su Con-vention and Visitors Bureau executive director. “When we use the term ‘visitors’ we don’t just mean vacationers. Visitors can also be in-state residents who come to the Valley for events such as theater, corporate retreats, events and more.”

The Mat-Su Borough recently proposed building a warming facility/commu-nity center, much like the Selkregg Chalet in Kincaid Park in Anchorage, near the new Hatcher Pass Nordic skiing area. This develop-ment not only makes the area more attractive to out-of-town skiers, but will also give the Valley another venue for meeting planners to consider.

“When those types of visi-tors come to the area, they spend money on accom-modations, food and other items, and they contribute bed and sales taxes to the communities,” Quill said. “Those dollars spent stay in our community and pass from business to business, growing the economy for everyone.”

Mat-Su College’s growth also will impact visitation when a new 500-seat theatre comes online in 2014. The theater not only gives the college an excellent facility for school purposes, but it also has the opportunity to host theatrical productions, guest lectures and similar events. Those types of com-munity events draw visitors from outside the area.

“This is something that will bring the community to the campus for reasons other than a class,” Mat-Su Col-lege Director Talis Colberg told the Frontiersman when the University of Alaska Board of Regents signed off on the project.

Developments don’t always have to be brick and mortar to contribute to the community, either. The Matanuska Greenbelt Trails project is a great example of how infrastructure develop-ments contribute to the Val-ley’s appeal to visitors.

BIG PICTURE

By Casey Ressler

If you build it ...

See RESSLER, Page C4

BY ANDREW WELLNERFrontiersman.com

MAT-SU — Right in the Mat-Su Borough’s backyard, and despite the lack of amenities like a chair-lift and equipment rentals, every year people ski and snowboard in Hatcher Pass.

It’s an area where people want to play, so what’s the hold-up in developing Hatcher Pass? Why hasn’t anyone built a ski area there?

Well, the thing about Hatcher Pass, and ski areas generally, is that they don’t really pencil out profit-wise unless they come with residential development or some kind of other business. Though the borough has been reticent to open that can of worms, it has steadfastly left the door open.

“Numerous studies and experi-ence have proven that some com-mercial businesses are a key fac-tor to the financial success of any alpine facility,” the borough states in a packet of answers to questions about its plan for use of the bor-ough-owned portion of the Gov-ernment Peak area.

The current plan is to move for-

ward incrementally, building what the borough can afford when it can afford it.

“What area(s) get built and when is a matter of economics, com-bined with social and political desires,” according to that packet of answers.

Which is why all summer crews working on a $328,530 contract have been building cross-country ski trails there. The plan is to have 3.6 miles installed by September.

“The trails will be located about one mile north of Edgerton Parks Road and one mile west of the N. Palmer-Fishhook Road on the southern slopes of Government Peak near Hatcher Pass,” accord-ing to a borough press release. “Skiing, hiking, biking and other non-motorized activities will be possible on the new trails.”

This is phase one of a two-phase

plan to build out the cross-country trails. The network will eventually have 10 kilometers of trails in long and short loops. The second phase will include more difficult trails suitable for competitions.

Meanwhile, the borough is building a road to the area, having approved a contract to construct it in February 2013.

The borough expects that even just the Nordic trails will be a boost to the local economy.

“Visitors each year in the Mat-Su are estimated to spend $101 mil-lion. The recreation area will drive up such spending. The ski area will draw hundreds of skiers com-peting in regional and state high school competitions as well as their families and booster clubs who will shop at local businesses,” accord-ing to a borough press release.

The road will cost $3.3 million in

federal funding, with an additional $218,465 in borough money.

The borough has also identified areas where motorized use would be allowed and areas where it wouldn’t. On the motorized front, it has funded a city of Houston project to build a parking lot on the north side of the pass off of Zero Lake Road.

On the non-motorized side, the borough says the Government Peak area where it has plans for skiing has been closed to motor-ized uses, even to corridors from one side to the other. Corridors would require multiple stream and river crossings and motorized users would be a hazard to skiers, according to the packet.

“The area has been closed to off-road motorized use since 1986,” the borough reports. “Although the area has been closed to motor-ized uses, the area has had, and continues to experience, some non-authorized off-road motor-ized activities.”

Contact reporter Andrew Well-ner at andrew.wellner@frontiers-man.com or 352-2270.

ROBERT DeBERRY/FrontiersmanA piece of heavy equipment moves dirt along the new road to the cross-country skiing area of the Edgerton Park Road in the Hatcher Pass area.

Hatcher Pass skiing moves downhill‘Visitors each year in the Mat-Su are estimated to spend $101 million. The recreation area will drive up such spending.’

—Mat-Su Borough

ROBERT DeBERRY/FrontiersmanGoose Creek Prison at Point MacKenzie recently opened to house prisoners. The $240 million correctional center has a capacity for more than 1,200 inmates.

BY ANDREW WELLNERFrontiersman.com

POINT MACKENZIE — While there appears to be some residual hard feelings over the cost to build and operate it, the Goose Creek Cor-rectional Center is slowly and steadily coming online.

So maybe it’s a good time to ask: what does the Mat-Su Borough get out of this deal?

“The big thing for the Valley is 325, 350 full-time jobs,” said Mat-Su Borough Purchasing Officer Russ Krafft, who has been more-or-less the borough’s point person on the project. Mat-Su built the facility and the state will purchase it over time.

Confronted with a gambling metaphor — that the borough placed a bet the prison would pay-

See PRISON, Page C4

Port Mac prison a calculated gamble

PAGE C4 SUNDAY, JULY 29, 2012 FRONTIERSMAN.COM

Hanson said. “With the Menard, the Brett (Memo-rial Ice Arena) and the Palmer ice rink, we’re get-ting close.”

Another facility new to the Valley within the last decade, the AT&T Sports Center, also regularly draws people to the community. In addition to offering a full fitness club, the facility — which sits along the Palm-er-Wasilla Highway — has become home to a variety of youth and adult sports tournaments and camps.

Basketball events such as the Martin Luther King Tournament, Ice Classic Junior High School State Tournament, March Mania and Denali Orthopedic Tournament draw teams and participants from across Alaska, as far north as Barrow and south as communities in Southeast Alaska.

Teams from Anchorage, Fairbanks and the Kenai Peninsula also regularly make the trip to the Valley to compete in tournaments hosted by the Sports Cen-ter. Teams from Anchorage also compete in the center’s men’s league basketball programs.

3rd Annual Home Educator Fair

Sponsored by Books Are FunLearn about local Home School

Programs and ServicesShop Home School SuppliesCall Shannon for more info

355-7470

Personal Training -

Buy One - Get One Free!

Learn about ourKids Programs!

Lil’ Kickers Soccer Lil’ Hoopers BasketballLil’ Tacklers Football

Tiny DancersCheer Classes

Junior G.I. Boot Campand more

SIGN UP TODAY!

Fun Kids’ Activities!Face Painting & Crafts

Bouncing Bears Obstacle Courseand Lane Slides

Adult Class Demos

Zumba • RIPPEDCrossFit

7GO.PLAY(746.7529)

SAVE THE DATE - AUGUST 18!1507 N. Double B St.3/4 Mile West of Trunk Rd.on the Palmer-Wasilla Hwy. X

NLV

40997

AT&T Sports Center FALL FAMILY FLING Saturday, August 18 · 9am - 1pmFREE CLASSES, BALLOONS AND PRIZES! • FREE SAMPLES OF HERBALIFE PROTEIN SHAKES • TOURS OF AT&T SPORTS CENTER

Reduced Membership Enrollment all

day!

1

2

3

4

56

7

CURTIS D. MENARD MEMORIAL SPORTS CENTERLocation: 1001 S. Mack Dr., Wasilla

Contact: (907) 357-9100Online: cityofwasilla.com/index.aspx?page=114

WASILLA HIGH SCHOOLLocation: 701 E. Bogard Rd., WasillaContact: (907) 352-8200

Online: matsuk12.us/whs

BRETT MEMORIAL ICE ARENALocation: 746 E. Bogard Rd., WasillaContact: (907) 376-9260

Online: http://tinyurl.com/cqy6u9t

AT&T SPORTS CENTERLocation: 1507 N. Double B St., PalmerContact: (907) 746-7529

Online: attsportscenter.com

PALMER HIGH SCHOOLLocation: 1170 W. Arctic Ave., PalmerContact: (907) 746-8400

Online: matsuk12.us/phs

COLONY HIGH SCHOOLLocation: 9550 E. Colony Schools Dr., Palmer

Contact: (907) 861-5500Online: matsuk12.us/chs

MTA EVENTS CENTERLocation: 1317 Kerry Weiland Way, Palmer

Contact: (907) 746-4231Online: http://tinyurl.com/spbos

HOUSTON HIGH SCHOOLLocation: 12501 W. Hawk Ln., HoustonContact: (907) 891-9400

Online: matsuk12.us/hhs

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

WHERE TO GO

WASILLAASIIILLLLLLLLLLLLLLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA★ PALMERAAALMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMEEEER

★

8

HOUSTON★

VENUESContinued from Page C2

Susitna-Watana Hydroelectric Project

The Susitna-Watana Hydro-electric Project will provide stable, affordable electricity for more than 100 years. The pro-posed project consists of a single dam roughly 700-feet high at river mile 184, nearly 90-river miles upstream of Talkeetna and 35-river miles upstream of Dev-il’s Canyon rapids. The reservoir would be 39 miles long and two miles wide (at the widest).

In hydroelectric projects, stored water equates to energy. The water released through the turbines generates power. Preliminary studies indicate an installed capacity of 600 MW, which would provide half of the Railbelt’s energy needs.

The proposed project is being

licensed through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Integrated Licensing Process, which includes a series of rig-orous deadlines and check-in points to ensure the proposed project is not only moving through the regulatory process, but meeting stringent environ-mental and safety standards. The Susitna-Watana Hydroelectric Project is in year one of the six-year licensing process.

The FERC license is expected in 2017. The powerhouse, dam and related facilities are expected to be online in 2023, and will be linked by transmission lines to the Railbelt Intertie.

Responsible Development

Building on 30 years of data and more than 3,000 reports, the Susitna-Watana Hydro team worked with state and federal agencies, Alaska Native organi-zations, community members,

and scientific and environmental contractors to develop a robust environmental study plan, which was filed with FERC on July 16.

Understanding the Susitna River ecosystem and identifying potential project impacts is the goal of the environmental pro-gram.

Extensive fish studies are a key element of the environmental program, as is knowledge about populations of big game, like caribou and moose.

The Susitna-Watana Hydro-electric Project is an important component of building Alaska’s energy future, contributing to a diverse mix of energy sources while supporting stable com-munities and providing for eco-nomic development.

For more information, visit Susitna-Watanahydro.org.

Susan Bell is Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Com-merce, Community and Economic Development.

The interconnected trail sys-tem, located along the Glenn Highway near Kepler Lake, has attracted visitors for years. But recently, a group of dedicated residents worked to add sig-nage, trail enhancements and improvements to the area. This encourages more recreational users to visit and keeps them in the area, increasing the likeli-hood they are going to spend money in the Valley.

The Mat-Su Borough has used the Tourism Infrastructure Grant program to fund many projects that not only benefit res-idents, but visitors as well. Fund-ing has already been approved for development projects located from Lake Louise to Talkeetna, including new restroom facili-ties at popular trailheads; trail construction around the Valley; a canoe trail and dock built by

volunteers; and the development of master plans for recreational areas.

“You don’t normally look to a restroom as a tourism infra-structure project, but the lack of restrooms was something visitors mentioned often in the Mat-Su Borough’s Tourism Infrastructure Needs Study in 2008,” Quill said. “All infrastruc-ture development — including bathrooms – gives visitors the highest possible experience. If they have a great experience, whether it be hiking and camp-ing or attending a theatrical performance at the new Mat-Su College theater, they are going to tell their friends, and make plans to return. And when they do, they’re contributing to the economy, which benefits us all.”

Casey Ressler (casey@alaska-visit.com) is the marketing and communications manager at the Mat-Su Convention and Visitors Bureau.

RESSLERContinued from Page C3

BELLContinued from Page C2

out as an economic gamble over time — Krafft said that to the extent it’s a gamble, it was a very calculated one.

“Anything is a gamble, but the jobs that the prison creates, that’s a pretty sure thing. Will the workers if they don’t live in the Valley move out here? We don’t know for sure,” Krafft said. “Will it open up opportunities for Valley resi-dents to have good-paying jobs close to where they live? Certainly. There’s active recruiting going on here right now by (the Department of Corrections).”

So that part of it is a sure thing. And, to at least a certain extent, the bet was low stakes for the borough. The borough put up the land for the prison and staff time for everyone who worked on it other than Krafft, whose time was paid for as part of the project’s cost.

In return, the borough gets a near-cer-tainty of 325 jobs here, and likely more.

“There are some things that are kind of a long shot. Are we going to see a hotel built out there? Are we going to see con-venience stores?” Krafft asked. “We don’t know. A lot of that depends on the fami-

lies of the prisoners that are out there.”A hotel might sound far-fetched, but

with prisoners due to be housed at Goose Creek from all over the state, it might start to make sense. A lot of those prisoners will be ones who are currently housed in Colorado, where families probably have trouble visiting. The calculation is differ-ent when their loved ones are locked up at Goose Creek.

“They’re not all within a couple hours’ drive, but it’s certainly easier to get to Point MacKenzie from, say, Bethel, King Salmon, some of those areas, than it is to get to Denver. And once they’re here they’re going to need a place to stay,” Krafft said.

Convenience stores might be a little easier to swallow. Prison guards probably would like a place to stop by for a quick snack, besides the Point MacKenzie Gen-eral Store and Cafe.

But even if Point MacKenzie remains remote, there are still 325 more jobs for the borough there this year than last, and those jobs will stay as long as the prison is there.

“We’re not talking about Wal-Mart, Target, Fred Meyer-type of jobs. These are at or above living-wage jobs,” Krafft said.

The stakes, though, aren’t just as simple as the land and staff time. Those 325 peo-ple moving back and forth to work also will create an extended demand on the area’s infrastructure. Some of them will probably want to live nearby and there is plenty of land out there to build homes.

To some extent the prison could help with that. The water system put in place to serve the prison could be extended to other customers. There’s a sewage plant there, too, but extending city-style ser-vice would likely be very costly, Krafft said.

Matanuska Telephone Association can easily add capacity to serve those new homes. Enstar already ran gas lines to the prison. Matanuska Electric Association is in a more challenging position.

“There would be a challenge just because you’re limited on the amount of power you can transmit,” Krafft said. “They’re in the process of replacing all of those line along KGB because of the growth in the area.”

MEA spokesman Kevin Brown said a major line extension out there and a pair of substation renovations have put the utility in a good place for future growth.

“We know we need to be prepared for it,” he said.

PRISONContinued from Page C3

ROBERT DeBERRY/FrontiersmanA typical two-inmate pod at Goose Creek Correctional Center.