Officials consider addition to prison Board looks at amending an agreement

No definite plans are in place for expanding the NOCC, a CCA spokesman said.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR STAFF Writer
YOUNGSTOWN -- The city's board of control is expected to consider changing its agreement with a private prison company to allow up to 1,000 additional prisoner beds at the Northeast Ohio Correctional Center.
At a board of control meeting Thursday, Mayor George McKelvey said he expects a special board meeting next week for members to consider an amendment to a development agreement with Corrections Corporation of America.
The Nashville, Tenn., based company operates NOCC, the private prison on Youngstown-Hubbard Road.
McKelvey said that the company is looking at building an addition with 1,000 prison beds and bumping up its work force by about 300 employees.
The board of control consists of McKelvey, its chairman; city finance director David Bozanich, its secretary; and city law director, Atty. Iris Guglucello.
Bozanich said that the private prison is soliciting contracts nationally to house additional prisoners.
If NOCC secures those contracts, it could expand the East Side prison to add 1,000 prisoner beds.
Louise Gilchrist, director of marketing for the Nashville company, said the Youngstown facility houses 1,824 prisoners and has a capacity of 2,016.
"They looked at redevelopment of all of their other locations, and they chose Youngstown," McKelvey said. "That says something for Youngstown."
Gilchrist said that the amendment is a routine matter to allow for additional prisoners at the facility if the need arises.
"At this point, we don't have any definitive plans to expand the facility in Youngstown," she said.
Chevrolet Centre change orders
In other business, the city's board of control approved $88,615 worth of change orders to the Chevrolet Centre in its last regular meeting of the year.
The changes approved Thursday raise to nearly $1 million the total of change orders approved on the city-owned facility in the last three months.
The list approved Thursday includes a $56,040 increase in a contract with Roger Kreps Drywall and Plastering of Boardman. The company installed drywall and metal panels inside the arena.
The Chevrolet Centre, home of the Youngstown SteelHounds, opened in late October and is projected to cost $45.38 million. A final cost is expected in the next couple of months, city officials have said.
McKelvey commended Carmen S. Conglose Jr., deputy director of public works, for his oversight of the project. He also lauded council members and other city officials for their support, "vision and steadfastness" in seeing the project through.
"There will be 80,000 people in and out of the Chevrolet Centre in a week's period," the mayor said.
He said that Disney on Ice has added shows to the downtown venue. Each of those productions draws about 6,000 people.
"It's gratifying to see the response of people in this area to this center," McKelvey said.
The board also approved providing $300,000 to the Exal Corp., located in the Performance Place Industrial Park, in site development funding. The company, which makes cans, plans a $70 million expansion.