Prairie Correctional Facility

Prairie Correctional Facility
Interactive map of Prairie Correctional Facility
Location
StatusClosed
Capacity1,600
Population0 (2010)
Closed2010 (2010)
Managed byCoreCivic

The Prairie Correctional Facility is a 1,600-bed private prison in Appleton, Minnesota, United States used for immigrant detention. The private prison managed by CoreCivic acquired a contract from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in 2026.

History

The prison was built by the city of Appleton and first opened, empty, in 1992. In March 1993 the city reached an agreement with the Puerto Rico Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to fill all 516 beds.[1] Through the years the prison was expanded twice, housed prisoners from Colorado, Idaho, Wisconsin, Hawaii, Washington, Minnesota and North Dakota, and was a significant local employer.

CoreCivic bought the facility in 1997, and closed the prison in 2010[2][3] following declining demand for the facility by the State of Minnesota, which had recently constructed four new 416-bed housing units at Minnesota Correctional Facility – Faribault and added 250 new beds to Minnesota Correctional Facility – Moose Lake.[4]

The Prairie Correctional Facility is the only privately owned prison in the state of Minnesota.[5] In 2023, HF1200 was introduced to the Minnesota Legislature, which would ban the Department of Corrections from housing prisoners in privately owned prisons. Supporters of the bill stated that the Prairie Correctional Facility is too far from a major hospital and the Twin Cities, where many of the inmates families would be visiting from.[5] Opponents to the bill state that opening the Prairie Correctional Facility would provide jobs to Swift County and reduce overcrowding in Minnesota prisons.[6]

Use by ICE

In August of 2025, CoreCivic began pursuing a contract with ICE to hold detained immigrants in the Prairie Correctional Facility. An ICE roadmap from July 2025 showed that the agency planned to expand to different parts of the country during President Trump's second term. This plan includes the utilization of the facility.[7] Residents of Appleton are divided on whether or not they believe ICE should come into their community.[8]

During Operation Metro Surge, the widespread deployment of ICE agents in the Twin Cities and greater Minnesota, ICE detained more than 1000 people from Minnesota and surrounding states. ICE marked the Prairie Correctional Facility as a potential long-term facility in an Upper Midwestern detention and transportation network. ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations forecast spending up to $50 million to gain a jail space in Minnesota to help develop a privately-run detainee transfer network.[9]

On August 4, 2026, CoreCivic announced that a 5-year contract with ICE had been reached.[10] The contract starts August 11th and the facility will begin receiving detainees in the fall or winter.[11]

References

  1. ↑ "Appleton built it ... and they came". Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Archived from the original on August 21, 2016.
  2. ↑ "CCA Announces Closure of Prairie Correctional Facility". Corrections Corporation of America. Archived from the original on July 13, 2011. Retrieved October 30, 2010.
  3. ↑ "Prairie Correctional Facility". Corrections Corporation of America. Archived from the original on October 27, 2010. Retrieved October 30, 2010.
  4. ↑ Havens, Chris (November 23, 2009). "Minnesota may use private prison in Appleton". Star Tribune (Minneapolis). Archived from the original on November 28, 2009. Retrieved October 30, 2010.
  5. 1 2 "House passes private prison prohibition - Session Daily - Minnesota House of Representatives". www.house.mn.gov. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  6. ↑ "Senator Westrom: Reopening the Prairie Correctional Facility is a helpful solution for Minnesota and the Swift County area". Minnesota Senate Republicans. March 29, 2023. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  7. ↑ Radelat, Ana (August 20, 2025). "ICE eyes former Appleton prison as it expands immigrant detention". MinnPost. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
  8. ↑ Arola, Brian (November 17, 2025). "Appleton residents weigh value of potential ICE detention center". MinnPost. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
  9. ↑ Cameron, Dell. "ICE Details a New Minnesota-Based Detention Network That Spans 5 States". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
  10. ↑ Arola, Brian; Radelat, Ana (August 5, 2026). "It's official: A dormant prison in rural Minnesota will become an ICE detention center". AP News.
  11. ↑ Murphy, Mary (August 4, 2026). "Prairie Correctional Facility in Appleton, Minnesota, will be used by ICE, company confirms". Alexandria Echo Press. Retrieved August 4, 2026.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.