NYC Approves Plan To Close Rikers Island By 2026

However, in its absence will be the creation of four new jails placed throughout four of the five boroughs.

New York City Council has approved a plan to close Rikers Island by 2026. In a report from the New York Times, the proposal was approved Thursday.

"What we are doing today will reshape the city for generations to come and impact the lives of every New Yorker," Corey Johnson, the City Council speaker, said. "For decades, our city was unfair to those who became involved in the justice system, and the overwhelmingly majority who were caught up were black and brown men."

However, as part of the plan to close Rikers, the city will build four new jails scattered across four of the five boroughs: one in Downtown Brooklyn; one in Queens; one in the Bronx and one in Manhattan.

Per the Times:

The city announced this week that the new facilities will be smaller than first anticipated with a combined daily capacity of about 3,300 prisoners. The jails will be about the same size — each with 886 beds — and will require reducing the jail population by more than half by 2026.

The cost to construct the new jails, as well as shut down Rikers and relocate its prisoners and corrections officers is expected to be more than $8 billion.

News of Rikers' closing came about back in 2017 when Bill de Blasio made the announcement during a press conference. At one point, New York City was even considering a 40-story prison in Manhattan as a part of Rikers shutdown plan.

Source: New York Times