Federal gov't posts first jobs for Thomson prison
THOMSON, Ill. - The federal Bureau of Prisons is hiring more than a dozen workers for the Thomson Correctional Center in northwestern Illinois.
The Quad City Times reported that 15 positions have been posted on USAJobs.gov, the federal government jobs website. The positions including a budget and technology officer, an IT specialist and correctional supervisors, with salary ranges of $49,520 to $107,434 a year.
The federal agency has allocated nearly $54 million to begin reopening the maximum-security penitentiary that's about 40 miles north of Moline.
About $10 million will be used to renovate the facility, which was a state prison that never fully opened because of budget constraints. The additional $43.7 million will be used for staffing and equipment.
Illinois built Thomson prison in 2001, but budget troubles kept it from fully opening. Its 1,600 cells housed fewer than 200 inmates before it was closed in preparation for a sale. The last inmates were moved out in 2010.
The federal government bought it for $165 million in 2012.
When the prison opens as a federal facility, it is expected to employ about 1,000 people and have an economic impact on Whiteside, Lee and Ogle counties.
It is expected to take two years before the prison is fully operational. The project will cost about $25 million for upgrades and renovations and about $170 million for equipment and staffing.
Federal Bureau of Prisons Director Charles Samuels has said Thomson is needed to reduce overcrowding at high-security federal prisons.
Congress hasn't approved the agency's spending plan and renovations have not yet begun.