City To Host Town Hall On Manhattan Jail Plan

CHINATOWN, NY — The city will host a town hall on plans to move the Manhattan Detention Center to 80 Centre Street in the wake of uproar from Chinatown advocates who for months believed the borough's jail would expand at the existing prison complex, Councilwoman Margret Chin announced Monday.

"While the Administration has much more work to do, the scheduling of this long-overdue meeting is a positive development for residents, business owners and community leaders," said Chin in a statement.

"At this Town Hall, the community will have an opportunity to learn more about the project, have their questions answered, and participate in a discussion on the future of the Manhattan Detention Center site," Chin's statement continued.

Elected officials and community advocates criticized the de Blasio administration for a lack of community engagement before announcing the city's proposal on Aug. 15 to retrofit 80 Centre Street, which houses the city's Marriage Bureau, into a high-rise jail as a part of a plan to shutter Rikers Island. City officials first alerted local leaders to the change at an insider meeting held in early August.

The town hall will be held at P.S. 124 at 6 p.m. on Sept. 12 — some two weeks prior to the first of a series of public meetings the de Blasio administration has set for the Lower Manhattan proposal on Sept. 27 at the Manhattan Borough President's office at 6 p.m.

Councilwoman Chin and Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer are co-sponsoring the event. The Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice did not immediately return a request for comment on whether officials from the mayor's office will be present to discuss the plan.

A conceptual design of the new jail proposed for 80 Centre Street in Lower Manhattan. (Image courtesy of Mayor Bill de Blasio's Office)