DCYF outlines capacity crunch, Mission Creek proposal and funding shortfalls for juvenile facilities

Jennifer Redmond, assistant secretary for juvenile rehabilitation at DCYF, and colleagues briefed the oversight board on facility-level capacity, demographic changes and planning work. Redmond said the JR population is older and stays longer than in prior years — by 2025 the average daily population was about 412 and sentence lengths and the share of adult-sentenced youth have risen since the JR-to-25 laws.

Redmond and Jenny Hedden (DCYF chief program officer) described the three secure facilities and their operating constraints: Green Hill School has a safe operating capacity JLARC and DCYF cited near 180 beds and has been operating above safe capacity since 2023; Echo Glen Children's Center's safe operating capacity is about 118 and generally houses younger males and the female secure population; Harbor Heights has an operationally preferred maximum of 32 beds despite 48 physical beds because program space and separation concerns make a smaller operational population safer.

DCYF staff warned that the state forecast (Caseload Forecast Council) projects a fairly flat total JR population through state fiscal 2029 — roughly 414 youth in the forecast used in the presentation — which would leave little buffer capacity. Hedden said the master-plan work (progress report due June 2027) aims to rebalance placement by security and geography and examine options for smaller, regional facilities and gender-responsive alternatives.

The agency described near-term options for additional capacity. Consultants identified Mission Creek — a previously used juvenile site that has been kept in warm closure — as a candidate for repurposing with a proposed renovated capacity of about 50 beds focused on smaller, juvenile-appropriate units. DCYF will submit a 2027 capital decision package to fund completion of pre-design and construction work and has proposed transferring operational costs from Harbor Heights to the new facility while ultimately vacating Harbor Heights in its current co-located configuration with Department of Corrections property.

Hedden and Redmond also detailed funding constraints: JR's per-resident marginal funding formula (originating from state analysis) provides roughly $37,000 and 0.45 FTE per forecasted resident; DCYF said this margin does not always cover costs for higher-acuity youth, medical needs, or inflationary pressures such as food and replacement staffing. Hedden said the agency requested additional FTEs in the last legislative session but a subsequent forecast reduction produced a net FTE loss in practice.

Board members pressed DCYF on buffer capacity needs, statutory placement limits and the role of forecasts and local data. DCYF acknowledged the system lacks routine early-warning data from local arrests or charging that would help predict admissions and urged better forecasting and data-sharing with local jurisdictions and courts.

Next steps: DCYF will proceed with master-plan work and a capital decision package for Mission Creek; board members asked to review master-plan materials and for continued briefings on capacity and critical incident data at an ad hoc August 20 meeting or at subsequent board sessions.