Firms outline plan to redesign former Berks youth detention center

Karen Shuey, Reading Eagle, Pa.
·4 min read

May 15—Following the approval of an emergency declaration in February to expedite the restoration of the former youth detention center, the Berks County commissioners on Tuesday got a first glimpse of the scope of the venture.

Representatives from the firms they hired to redesign the Bern Township facility so it can once again be used to detain juvenile offenders delivered a presentation during an operations meeting outlining what the next steps will be moving forward.

The rapid response to restore the center, which closed its doors in 2012, came after several county officials directly involved in the juvenile criminal justice system sounded the alarm this year that there is a desperate need for access to juvenile detention space amid a severe statewide shortage and a recent increase in young offenders.

The firms tapped by the county to complete the necessary redesign of the building are already familiar with the facility, said Chief Operations Officer Kevin Barnhardt.

USA Architects were the original designers of the building along County Welfare Road when it was constructed in 1990. The firm was also involved in the expansion of the facility in 2004, giving the center space for a total of 94 detained juvenile offenders.

The other firm, CGL Management, has been working with the county since 2018 on designing a new correctional facility. A review of the youth detention center was conducted as part of a needs assessment of the overall prison property.

Barnhardt told the commissioners that his team interviewed two other firms before deciding to hire USA Architects and CGL based primarily on their existing knowledge of the building and working relationships with the county.

During the presentation Tuesday, officials from the firms said the first phase of restoring the youth detention center will be establishing a new vision for the facility.

They explained that they will be meeting with those in the juvenile criminal justice system to learn what the needs of the population are, how they want the center to operate and what kind of programs they would like to see at the facility.

"There are a lot of interesting trends right now as you know in this area," said Chloe Jaco, senior vice president of CGL. "You want to be open and therapeutic, but you also have to be secure. This is an exciting time to think about how we can take this facility and create the kind of environment that you want to have."

Paul Swartz, CEO of USA Architects, said that when the building was first designed there was a strong emphasis from those in charge of the facility on discipline and structure. He said that while the building is in good shape overall it is still designed to meet those needs.

"Juvenile justice looks very different today," he said. "We have to think about how we can reenvision the current facility to allow for some of the new things going on. We are trying to create a little more flexibility and a more normative environment."

While Swartz and Jaco said they want to make sure the reimagining of the facility is done right, they also acknowledge the time crunch the county is facing.

So they unveiled a 45-day plan to meet with stakeholders to discuss the operational structure of the center and the programs they want to provide. Once they have those details, they said, the firms will have a better understanding of the cost to restore the facility to meet those needs.

They said following this initial phase the commissioners should have all the necessary information to start implementing changes to the building so they can proceed with reopening the facility.

"We definitely understand that this is an emergency situation," Jaco said. "You need to have some really good information to make some really good decisions."

Commissioners Chairman Christian Leinbach said he believes the plan outlined by the firms will help the board as they look to move quickly on reopening the center, adding that they are in discussion with officials from Lehigh and Dauphin counties about entering into a partnership that would make the facility a regional asset.

"I would like to move on this as soon as we can," he said of the 45-day plan.

Commissioners Michael Rivera and Dante Santoni supported the plan as well, with the board voting unanimously to place a resolution giving USA Architects and CGL permission to carry out the plan on the agenda of an upcoming meeting.