As part of Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers’ prison reform agenda, his administration last year announced plans to eventually close Green Bay Correctional Institution.
In light of the news, I surveyed a few people at my prison, Oshkosh Correctional Institution, about an hour south of Green Bay, to learn what they thought of the potential closure. Some people viewed the closure as a necessary and positive change, while others thought the prison should stay open.
GBCI sits in Brown County, in the village of Allouez, nestled between the cities of Green Bay and DePere. The prison, built as a bicycle factory, took in its first prisoners on Aug. 31, 1898, and has seen continual use since then, now operating as a maximum security facility — and the second oldest active prison in the state.
The prison has come under scrutiny in recent years after news outlets reported on its poor conditions. Robert L., who was incarcerated at GBCI from 2020 to 2024 and is now detained at Oshkosh, said the prison had a bad ventilation system and trash had piled up in the halls.
“You could hear rats running through the vents, rats under the door, rats eating your canteen bags,” he said.
The electricity also went out frequently.
“Once the power goes out, you can’t even use the toilet or sink,” he said.
While he understands that maximum security prisons are not going to be the most comfortable to live in, he still called the conditions inhumane. He said he hopes the prison will shut down.
Brian Huisman, who was incarcerated at GBCI from 1997 to 2007, said he sees the development opportunity that closing the prison could create for the village of Allouez, which sits across Fox River from Lambeau Field, where the Green Bay Packers play. In fact, according to a local news report, the village has already planned a mixed-use development project for the land the prison sits on.
“The prison is fine,” Huisman said.
Others believe Wisconsin won’t actually shut down the prison. George Shallowhorn III, who was incarcerated at GBCI from 2006 to 2010, said the prison should “absolutely” close but isn’t holding out hope.
“It doesn’t have livable, human conditions,” Shallowhorn said.
He demonstrated how he was able to reach his hands out and touch both walls of his cell when he was there. He said the prison’s hallways were so dirty and greasy, it felt like being in a car mechanic’s shop.
“If they [close] it, it won’t be while I’m in prison, and I got 13 years,” he said.
Indeed, Wisconsin has a history of not following through once they’ve announced prison closures.
In 2018, then-Gov. Scott Walker signed Act 185, a plan to close the juvenile detention facilities Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake. While progress has been made since then, both facilities remain open and in use.
In fact, during the signing of Wisconsin’s new budget, Evers used a partial veto on a proposition to close GBCI by 2029. In a statement reaffirming the governor’s intention to close GBCI, he says it is “not responsible or tenable to require doing so absent a plan.” He also cited the slow-moving Act 185 in his reasoning. In other words, the plan to close GBCI is still tentative.
According to reporting from a local ABC affiliate, the state prison system is compiling projections for the number of beds it will need over the next 20 years. The department of corrections will then deliver those projections to a working group, and the data could be used to help figure out the prison system’s needs and a timeline for closing GBCI.
Some incarcerated people hope the closure remains in limbo, as they believe the prison should stay open. Scott Dahlen, who was incarcerated at GBCI from 2004 to 2018, said he would go back there if he could.
He did recall “big hunks” of paint peeling off the walls. He also remembered wildlife getting inside; at one point a group of bats nested in the ceiling of the prison gym. But he said he believes the prison just needs better maintenance.
Despite his desire to return, Dahlen said he thinks GBCI will ultimately close due to political pressure connected to the state’s overcrowded prison system.
During the pandemic, the state prison population dropped to its lowest level since around 2000. But today, the number of incarcerated has bounced back to near pre-pandemic levels. According to a state prison system population report from mid-March, the state has 23,501 adults in custody, about 32% above its design capacity for 17,829 adults. GBCI, in particular, is designed for 749 adults, but housed 1,104 adults as of late March. All five maximum security prisons in Wisconsin were listed as overcrowded.
“The overcrowding that we have is going to get worse [if GBCI closes],” Dahlen said. “To close it down and not replace it … will put a strain on the whole system.”
Evers’ prison reform plan does seek to address overcrowding, but many measures seem too small. One of the plan’s points is to turn Stanley Correctional Institution into a 1,500-bed maximum security prison, capable of absorbing everyone from GBCI and Waupun Correctional Institution. But this would displace the medium security population at Stanley prison, and every other medium security prison is already overpopulated.
For now, the future of GBCI remains uncertain. So far, the Wisconsin Legislature has only approved $15 million toward Evers’ reforms. And with Evers not running for reelection in 2026, it’s unclear whether his successor will maintain a commitment to prison reform.
