DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The head of Iowa’s corrections department says he still doesn’t know when the long-delayed Iowa State Penitentiary will open.
Director John Baldwin told House lawmakers Wednesday in a government oversight committee that officials are studying a potential solution to a faulty smoke control system. He says the process of completing that fix will require a few months, and additional staff training will take another few months.
The $165.5 million prison in Fort Madison was scheduled to open last March. It was delayed by flaws in a geothermal heating and cooling system, as well as the smoke control system. The geothermal system has since been fixed.
Baldwin, who retires Thursday, also told lawmakers that officials are still investigating who was responsible for design plans that eventually led to the problems.
