Louisiana officials have announced a $39 million investment for an addition to the Renaissance Home for Youth juvenile correction facility in Alexandria. The Rapides Parish Police Jury Facebook page points out that some of the funds will also be utilized to renovate the Renaissance existing dorm. The project will increase the number of beds from 12 to more than 50. The police jury social media post stated, “Our Rapides taxpayers will still get what they voted for – the $2.3 million annual tax will fund the existing facility like they voted for. But they will now get a larger, more modern and secure facility thanks to the state.”
Governor Jeff Landry says these types of facilities give juveniles an opportunity to rehabilitate. “And I want the people in this area to know that this is an investment and these are wonderful facilities we hope we really never fill.” Governor Landry says the improvements at Renaissance have been two decades in the making.
The expansion is expected to create more room for juveniles awaiting trial, mostly from Rapides Parish, but also from seven other parishes in Central Louisiana. Primarily, kids are placed at the facility for committing crimes, or as a result of experiencing traumatizing levels of abuse and neglect.
According to the Renaissance web page, the facility first opened its doors 52 years ago, in March 1973, with 12 boys capacity. Since then, Renaissance has recorded more than 15,000 client admissions. Facility leadership stated, “The focus remains community-based for our children. Today, Renaissance provides a wide range ‘continuum of care’ for boys and girls in need of protection and correction. WE MAKE A DIFFERENCE!”
Funding is provided by State of Louisiana contracts with the Office of Juvenile Justice, grants and ad valorem (i.e., property) funding renewal which was approved in 1984, 1994, 2004, and 2014. And Gov. Landry explained during his remarks at the event that, “Moving forward, these kinds of facilities take the people that we have to place in there and give them an opportunity to see that there is some hope out there, and that’s what we’re working for.”
Examining juvenile crime on the national level, The nonprofit agency The Sentencing Project reports that between 2000-2022, there was a 75% decline in youth incarceration. However, racial and ethnic disparities in youth incarceration and sentencing persist amidst overall decrease in youth offending.
