TCY intends to vacate the premises by Sept. 1, transferring juvenile residents to other TCY facilities.

Corrections Concepts Inc., a faith-based organization headquartered in Dallas, devoted about five hours last week to meet with Littlefield city officials and tour the facility.

"At this point we're considering some of the things they talked about," City Manager Danny Davis said Monday.

The two entities plan to meet again in September.

"They're going to try to have facilities for males, females, juveniles and geriatrics," Davis said. "Ours would be more likely ... adult males."

Financial terms were not discussed, he said.

"We did tell them what it would take to make our facility cash (needs)," Davis said.

Corrections Concepts would use the facility for a Christian-based prison program. The organization is in the final stage of starting a similar facility in Coleman that will likely house state and federal prisoners.

"This is falling in line with President Bush's faith-based initiatives," Davis said.

He added that the community of Littlefield is "really interested" in faith-based programs for the detention center.

"We're interested in seeing men's lives changed," said Bill Robinson, chairman of trustees of Corrections Concepts.

Under the program, men in their final 12 to 24 months of their prison terms, regardless of their offenses, could be transferred to the facility. There they would receive Christian-based transition training.

If Corrections Concepts were to use the Littlefield facility, about $1.5 million in capital improvements would be made in constructing a work center, Robinson said. Those funds would come from a "number of sources," he said.

Private industry would be allowed to set up shop in the medium-security facility and hire inmates at prevailing wage rates. The money earned by inmates would go to pay restitution to their victims, pay for their room and board, send money home to support their families, and stash away money in a savings account, Robinson said.

Types of industries that might participate include customer service call centers and light manufacturing.

Upon release from the facility, inmates would be greeted "at the gate" by a ministry member who would mentor and monitor them to try to ensure their success in the outside world, Robinson said.

Under the Corrections Concepts proposal, the city of Littlefield would contract with various agencies to house prisoners in the facility, Robinson said. From that money, the city would pay its overhead on the facility and then pay Correctional Concepts a per diem rate, per inmate.

Littlefield has about $700,000 per year in bond payments on the city-owned facility. The city has enough in reserve funds to make the payments for up to a year without having a tenant paying rent, Davis said.

p.christine.smith@lubbockonline.com 766-8754