I OPPOSE ANY PRISON ON THE NEW RIVER! I am in favor of good jobs and economic development for Grayson County. REASONS PEOPLE SHOULD OPPOSE THE PRISON ON THE NEW RIVER THIS IS THE WRONG SITE FOR A PRISON The proposed site is on the New River one of 14 American Heritage Rivers. The site is in the middle of land that is protected from development through conservation easements or is in the process of being protected. The site will require millions of dollars of public tax money (our tax dollars) to be spent on building a bridge across the New, roads, water and sewer - all which will benefit a private developer. This is corporate welfare at its worst. The site will require the condemnation and taking of private land for road, bridge and utility easements to the prison. Land that has been owned by your neighbors for generations. The site is directly across the river from a Boy Scout Camp. Should a bridge be built across the river, it will most likely be at the entrance of the Boy Scout Camp. The site is part of an area where three state governments and two federal agencies are working to establish the New River Blueway that begins at Cox\'s Chapel. Lt. Governor Tim Kaine has already dedicated land in this area for a Virginia DCR canoe campground. The site is not consistent with Grayson County\'s Comprehensive Plan. PROMISE OF JOBS IS MISLEADING Less than 30% of the jobs will actually go to Grayson County residents. They will be the lowest paying jobs that offer the least opportunity for advancement. The management, administration and other key positions at the prison will require advanced degrees, special training and experience that many of the folks who need the jobs right now don\'t have. Plus the state correction system\'s seniority procedures will give first crack at the good jobs to those who are already in the state system Even if 100% of the projected 250 jobs go to Grayson County residents, it will be at a cost of $360,000 per job when you factor in the cost to taxpayers of building the bridge, roads and getting water and sewer to this site. Virginia taxpayers are being asked to pay a premium for this prison just to provide low paying jobs for this area. Prisons, or any public facility, should built where they are most efficient to build and at the least cost to taxpayers. Once a community is labeled \"a prison community\" other employers who can bring better paying jobs are much less likely to consider locating or expanding facilities here. BAD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT One of the options in the CCS proposal provides for an on-site sewage treatment plant that would discharge thousands of gallons of treated prison sewage into the New River every day. The lighting, traffic and noise generated from the proposed prison will destroy the nesting and breeding habitat of a number of rare birds that are just now making a comeback including the Golden Eagle and the American Bald Eagle. A bridge across the river just to support the prison will be a visual scar to one of the most beautiful sections of the river and will serve only the private developer of this prison.

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