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Cafe Owners: Prayers Recipe For Recover

By JENNIFER LEARN-ANDES jandes@leader.net
 Tuesday, January 07, 2003 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1A 





Luzerne County court officials have permanently closed the Wilkes-Barre
juvenile detention center, even though the state said the old facility was
usable. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 State Department of Public Welfare spokeswoman Stacey Ward said county
court representatives surrendered the valid Wilkes-Barre juvenile detention
center license, saying the building was unacceptable and they would instead
send juveniles to other facilities in eastern Pennsylvania. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The decision put 16 county employees out of work at the end of the year. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Time will tell how this decision will shake out financially and
politically. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Board of Commissioners has sole authority over deciding which
preadjudication facility is used by the county to house juveniles as they
await permanent placement. All three commissioners have said they wanted to
continue using the old facility as long as the state deemed it OK. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Commissioner Tom Makowski has made it clear that he won't vote to give the
courts any more local tax money to pay to send youth offenders to outside
facilities. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The court's elimination of the 16 positions will offset potential
increases. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The bottom-line dollar impact is impossible to estimate because there's no
way of knowing how many youths will be lodged at outside facilities and at
what cost. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Youths likely will have to be housed at several facilities that charge
varying rates, because none has enough space to handle all the county's needs. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Ward said the federal government covers detention costs for some youths,
and the county and state will split the rest of the juvenile detention bill
50-50. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Court officials have said the rate could be as much as $300 per juvenile
per day, depending on the type of facility and demand. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The county's closed facility cost $160 per juvenile per day. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 County Court of Common Pleas President Judge Mike Conahan said Monday that
he believes it will be cheaper for the county to send youths outside the area. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Conahan said the closure was necessary because the facility was unsafe and
commissioners dragged their feet for years on committing to a solution. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The county could indefinitely contract with other facilities, but Makowski
and minority Commissioner Stephen A. Urban believe it's more cost efficient to
build and own a facility because the county can control its costs and
guarantee space. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Makowski and Urban plan to initiate construction of a new facility soon. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The new facility, estimated to cost $9.2 million, would be funded through a
bond. With financing charges, the total cost to taxpayers could be $17 million
to $19 million, Makowski has said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Conahan and other court officials are eager to use a juvenile detention
center under construction in Pittston Township by Pennsylvania Child Care, a
private company. The company is building the facility without a commitment the
county will use it. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Company officials are in the process of seeking state licensing. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 However, it might not be so simple. The state has just begun the licensing
review process and hasn't agreed on a per-day reimbursement rate. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Also, Ward stressed, the Board of Commissioners must OK a contract with any
facility to obtain state and federal reimbursement. It's not clear the
commissioners would give that approval. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The courts didn't need the commissioners' approval to send youths elsewhere
because the county already had contracts with other facilities in eastern
Pennsylvania. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Makowski has said that Pennsylvania Child Care's prices aren't reasonable,
although he hasn't released figures or comparisons to back up his argument,
despite two written requests by the Times Leader. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Urban said he doesn't consider the Pennsylvania Child Care facility an
option because one of the investors - West Hazleton attorney Bob Powell -
failed to disclose his involvement in the project when he started negotiations
with the county while he was a county solicitor. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Powell also failed to file financial disclosure forms required by the state
Ethics Act, Urban said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``To me it's an ethical issue,'' Urban said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Urban noted that the union representing the 16 child-care workers has filed
a grievance against the court because the county facility that closed had a
state license. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Fired child-care worker Theresa Purta, 42, of Plains Township, said she
regrets losing her job but understands that something had to be done because
the building was in bad shape. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``The bugs (cockroaches) wouldn't go away, no matter what they did or how
much they sprayed, because of the steam tunnels underneath the building,''
Purta said. ``The ceilings were always leaking. It was terrible.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 However, Purta wishes commissioners would have addressed the problem years
ago so she could start working at the new facility - if that's the option
selected. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Purta, who went to work at the juvenile detention center in 1997, said the
last day of work Dec. 31 was without fanfare. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``Everybody was very depressed, but there was nothing we could do.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Jennifer Learn-Andes, a Times Leader staff writer, can be reached at
831-7333. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Juvenile Detention Center Is Closed Down 
Facility Considered Usable By State, But Luzerne County Court Officials Decide
Otherwise. Juveniles Are To Be Sent To Other Centers In Eastern Pa. For Now.

Juvenile Detention Center Is Closed Down Facility Considered Usable By State, But Luzerne County Court Officials Decide Otherwise. Juveniles Are To Be Sent To Other Centers In Eastern Pa. For Now.