Halfway house complaints could change location The town of Green Bay location is too rural, residents say By Anna Krejci News-Chronicle After a string of complaints, residents gathered to hear information on a proposed halfway house in the town of Green Bay heard what they wanted to hear: That the house's organizers might reconsider the location. The town has been opposed to the facility, which could house federal prisoners, because of its proximity to Bay Shore Park and the lack of jobs for prisoners in the rural community of nearly 2,000. ATTIC Correctional Services Inc. submitted a proposal to the Federal Bureau of Prisons to convert the Alpine House, 5628 Sturgeon Bay Road, into a halfway house for inmates nearing the end of their sentences, for pretrial defendants released on bail and individuals on probation or parole. Near the end of the meeting Kathy Johnson, an ATTIC representative, said the group would rethink the proposal to place the halfway house in the town of Green Bay, but insisted that the need for one will not go away. She said a larger city, such as Green Bay, was a more ideal location for it. "We may need your support to have one there," she said. The house would hold approximately eight individuals, although it has a capacity for 19, Kathy Johnson, an ATTIC representative, said at the meeting. Some residents would have access to vehicles, and sex offenders could reside there. The Federal Bureau of Prisons requires residents be employed within 15 days of moving to the house and to hold a 40-hour-a-week job. Many present at the meeting said a halfway house in a rural area without sufficient policing endangered residents more than those in a more populated area. "The location is bizarre," said Diane Jonet, a resident. Because part of ATTIC's goal is to help former or soon-to-be former inmates be financially independent, Jonet said the town of Green Bay does not have jobs and is inappropriate for the house. She added that it took the Brown County Sheriff's Department 20 minutes to respond to a false alarm set off in her house, which is not enough time to help a victim of a crime. Sheriff Dennis Kocken said he opposes the halfway house's location, given that the county is planning to cut the department's budget. Although he said he understands the need for a halfway house, Kocken said the department can only respond to calls and cannot afford to patrol the area on a regular basis. Despite the safety concerns, ATTIC CEO and president Terry Marshall said a halfway house is needed somewhere. "If you do not have a facility like this people are going to return anyway," he said, "and be less supervised." Johnson said the non-profit organization has operated for 26 years and is funded partly by Wisconsin Department of Corrections. It has three halfway houses in Madison. On June 18, the Brown County Board will decide whether to send a letter of opposition to the house. A committee voted last week in favor of the letter and several legislators and town governments have submitted a letter of opposition to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.