Seven months have passed since the Altus Correctional Facilities Authority was formed, and progress on the issue to bring a 1,000 bed private prison to Altus is still up in the air. Although the City of Altus was initially part of the project, Mayor T.L. Gramling said earlier this week that they are no longer involved.

Between February 1 through the 3rd, a draft for Altus City Resolution 2009-12 was made by McMahan and Vernon, P.C. (Dan McMahan and partner Rick Vernon) to form Altus Correctional Facilities Authority. This body would have authority to construct a private prison here in Altus.

On February 6, a special City Council meeting was held to deal with Hangar #33 at the Altus/Quartz Mountain Regional Airport and to create a new Public Trust Authority to construct and manage a medium-security detention facility.

During that meeting, David Braddock, Altus Economic Development Corporation consultant, introduced Sam McCoy, Jeff Andrews and Bobby Jack, members of Detention Solutions Management, LLC (DSI). McCoy said, according to the minutes of this meeting, “Presupposing that you accept our initiative and create the Trust, we want to spend the next 6 to 8 months working with the Trust to do a business plan which includes architectural rendering, engineering, site acquisition and financing.”

Discussion on the matters of the Trust, which was to be named the Altus Correctional Facilities Authority, was held and the Trustees were listed as follows: Darrill Leverett, Tom Yates, Winston Higgs, Mike Duffy and Devin Graves. The trust was approved unanimously by the City Council members who were: Dean Garrett, David Webb, Donald Jouett, Don Johnson, Peggy Risinger, Bob Beers, Sid Willis and David Brown..

On February 18, the Altus Correctional Facilities Authority met and elected officers: Mike Duffy, Chairman, Darrill Leverett as Vice-Chairman, Winston Higgs for Secretary, Tom Yates and Devin Graves both for Assistant Secretary. The trustees approved a legal services agreement between the Trust and McMahan and Vernon, P.C., with Dan McMahan being Authority Counsel.

Next, the trustees approved a “Preliminary Development Agreement” with DSI Management. Directly from the minutes of the meeting, DSI “proposed to build an approximately 1,000 bed private (city) prison for men only. They will develop the project on 100 acres of land and they will do all the architectural and engineering work necessary.”

Seven months have elapsed since the Authority was formed. How has the issue progressed?

Mayor T.L Gramling said Tuesday that “the City is no longer involved.” It is now being said that private funds are being sought for the prison. There is a technicality for the City though, as the beneficiary of the Trust. According to Oklahoma Statute 60-176.1.E: “No trust in which a county or municipality is the beneficiary shall hereafter create an indebtedness or obligation until the indebtedness or obligation has been approved by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the governing body of the beneficiary.” That means that, if and when the Altus Correction Facilities Authority wants to take on any debt or obligation, the City Council will have to approve it by a 2/3 majority vote.

David Braddock’s only statement to the Times, regarding the matter of progress on the prison, has been that the study for the prison is ongoing and that there is nothing to report at this time. Darrill Leverett said he was on a committee but that he has “nothing to say since they (the Authority) met only once.” Mike Duffy, Chairman of the Authority, and Dan McMahan, Authority Counsel, were not available for comment.