Plan to hand off Rikers still a go, DOC says

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The process of closing the Rikers Island jail facilities is scheduled to continue without a delay despite the crisis on the island, the DOC says. Photo by U.S. Geological Survey via Wikimedia Commons

The process of closing the Rikers Island jail facilities is scheduled to continue without a delay despite the crisis on the island, the DOC says. Photo by U.S. Geological Survey via Wikimedia Commons

By Rachel Vick

Several months ago, the Department of Correction touted the transfer of one of its buildings to the Department of Citywide Administrative Services as a major step toward the permanent closure of Rikers Island.

Since then, the jail complex has fallen into crisis and the DOC has had to expand its presence on the island in an effort to calm the situation.

Despite the deteriorating conditions on Rikers, DOC representatives say the agency is still on pace to hand over another building to DCAS by January, when it is required by law to do so.

Under the Renewable Rikers Act, DOC is required to swap ownership of portions of the notorious facilities to DCAS every six months until all the buildings have been transferred.

The next portion of the jail complex to be handed over has not yet been identified, according to a DOC spokesperson, though they do not anticipate delays in the process.

“We are committed to getting off of Rikers Island,” the spokesperson said. “Each transfer means we are one step closer to having more modern, humane facilities that are climate controlled and far better than what exists today.”

They will not be transferring any facility actively housing individuals in custody, but were not able to confirm strategies for building selection or the steps to prepare currently inhabited buildings for transfer.

In July DCAS gained control of the empty James A. Thomas Center, one of the oldest facilities on the property, kicking off the process of clearing the island by 2027.

When the plan was first signed in February 2021, Mayor Bill de Blasio said “transferring these facilities from DOC to DCAS brings our plan to create a smaller, safer, and more humane jail system even closer to reality.”

Construction on the first phase of Queens’ borough based jail in Kew Gardens – which includes a parking lot and community center – began over the summer and is on track to be completed by 2023. The jail facility in Kew Gardens will not be completed until 2027.

With no direct news on the immediate next steps for transferring or emptying facilities, some advocates say they are frustrated. Their concern is compounded by what they say is a lck of transparency in the transfer process and the ongoing crisis in the facilities.

“We believe more transfers can be made even before the end of the administration,” said Darren Mack, co-director of Freedom Agenda in the Urban Justice Center “The Mayor is not listening to the [officials] who call for decarceration and chose to listen to the police commissioner, who is basically lying to the public about the crime surge and connection to bail reform and COVID releases; due to that lack of courage to correct, the mayor is losing the opportunity to transfer buildings and more land to DCAS.”

Mack said the de Blasio administration “has been dragging their feet” with the transfer process and releasing detainees — which could free up buildings for transfer.

“It's a big disappointment and it feels like sort of a betrayal to what he committed to previously in regard to moving forward,” he said. “There was no conversation or communication until we nudged them and the same thing is happening again.”

“With the same amount of force the people are ultimately going to win,” Mack added. “It's going to be a challenge, of course, but that hasn’t deterred us in the past.”