The opening of a new Washington juvenile rehabilitation center initially slated for early this year has been pushed to June, a delay that may prolong overcrowding issues at the Green Hill School in Chehalis.

The Green Hill School has been the subject of criticism and debate for a year as overcrowding issues in the medium-maximum security youth prison have halted programming, amplified violent incidents and led to lockdowns. The state-run youth prison has capacity for 180 beds, but for the past year, it has housed around 230 boys and young men ages 17 to 25.

The Department of Children, Youth and Families and former Gov. Jay Inslee announced the plan in November to open the new facility on the grounds of Stafford Creek Corrections Center, an adult prison near Aberdeen. The 48-bed center, which DCYF has dubbed “Harbor Heights,” is intended to be a therapeutic environment with special privileges, such as an “Emerging Adult Leaders Program.” Despite Harbor Heights being a former Department of Corrections facility and near an adult prison, state leaders have been adamant that it will be staffed by DCYF and that the Department of Corrections will have no interaction with the people incarcerated there.

When Inslee announced the opening in November, he said the rising incarcerated youth population was due to an increase in crime tied to the rise of gun violence and defended a 2018 law that, in part, extended juvenile jurisdiction to the age of 25. During that news conference, Inslee said the state did not have a specific timeline for when Harbor Heights would open but said it would be “early 2025.” In an interview this month, DCYF Secretary Tana Senn said it would “definitely” be open June 1.

People incarcerated at Green Hill who are 18 and over, with preference for those 21 and over, would have to apply to be admitted to the new facility and meet certain requirements, like having a high school diploma and not being in maximum security. Senn described it as an “incentives-based” program for the young men who are admitted, with cognitive behavioral therapy, leadership training and financial literacy courses. Ideally, opening the facility will release more space in Green Hill for people to move into. Green Hill’s new superintendent starts in April.

DCYF first pitched the idea to move some young people to Stafford Creek in September. In Inslee’s biennial budget, he included $31.8 million to fund Harbor Heights.

In 2022, the state closed the Pacific County Naselle Youth Camp, a medium-security detention center for male youth. Since the overcrowding issues began, DCYF and state leaders have repeatedly defended the closure, pointing to issues with staffing, its remote location and the physical deterioration of the building.

In the state Legislature, lawmakers are considering measures that could influence the juvenile rehabilitation population — both by trying to prevent youth from entering prisons and allowing DCYF new ways to manage the population once youth are in its custody.

At the front end, Senate Bill 5296 would require juvenile courts to make an independent finding supported by “a preponderance of evidence” that it’s necessary to imprison a juvenile to protect the safety of the public, rather than have them get treated in a community facility or on home monitoring. The bill would also expand eligibility for alternatives in lieu of incarceration, like substance use or mental health treatment.

Another Senate bill that aims to tackle overcrowding would create a framework for how DCYF can reduce its population, including transferring people to community facilities on a case-by-case basis or to adult prison under certain circumstances if other options are exhausted. Senate Bill 5278 would allow incarcerated people to be transferred to Department of Corrections’ custody if they are over 21, they were convicted as an adult and the facility is above 105% capacity.

Senn said the department would like to see tweaks made in SB 5278, such as giving DCYF the ability to automatically transfer people to the Department of Corrections if capacity hits 105% under certain conditions.

“After session, if the Legislature doesn’t give us the tools, and we have overcrowding and some major problems,” Senn said, “it’s 100% the Legislature who didn’t give us the tools and who didn’t help address this problem.”