Dan Rutherford

SPRINGFIELD -- Gov. Rod Blagojevich said Friday he doesn’t want to close Pontiac Correctional Center. “That’s not something I want to do,” Blagojevich told reporters after cutting the ribbon to open the Illinois State Fair. “We don’t want to. I don’t want to.”

Blagojevich, who controls the fate of the 137-year-old maximum-security lock-up, for the first time linked its future to the on-going political battle he is having with House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago.

Rather than arguing the prison is too old to keep open, Blagojevich suggested the prison could remain open if lawmakers approve more money to keep it operating.

“We need those Democrats in the House to do the responsible thing and provide funding so that decisions like that don’t have to be made,” Blagojevich said.

That’s a switch from the administration’s earlier statements about Pontiac. In May, top officials at the Illinois Department of Corrections argued that closing Pontiac and moving its inmates to the mostly unused prison in Thomson would save taxpayers $4 million.

In documents filed in connection with the proposed closing, the agency never mentions the budget battle as a reason for shuttering the nation’s eighth oldest prison.

Latest move not a shock?

State Sen. Dan Rutherford, R-Chenoa, who is fighting to keep the prison open, said linking Pontiac’s future to the political wrangling with Madigan comes as no surprise.

Rutherford believes Blagojevich is trying to force the House to approve a variety of new revenue sources for the state by staging a “government calamity.”

Along with causing furor by closing Pontiac, the governor also has slashed funding for state parks, historic sites, driver’s license facilities and substance abuse programs, Rutherford said.

“I think it’s positive that the governor said he doesn’t want to close it. It’s better than saying it’s an old, decrepit building,” Rutherford said.

But, Rutherford said, “Its part of a strategy.”

The governor’s comments left Pontiac Mayor Scott McCoy confused.

“I have no idea how to read that,” McCoy said. “It is a connection we’ve never seen made. I hope he truly doesn’t want to close Pontiac.”

For now, Pontiac officials continue to prepare for an Aug. 20 hearing at Pontiac Township High School in which they hope to convince a legislative panel to vote against the prison closure.

Studies say the closure would blow a $45 million hole in the economy of the Pontiac region. By contrast, it would provide a $47.5 million boost to the Thomson area.

In his comments to reporters, Blagojevich made no mention of his plan to open the prison in Thomson, which was completed in 2001 but never fully opened because of budget concerns.

“It’s an unfolding process,” Blagojevich said. “We keep trying to get the Democrats in the House to pass sufficient funding so decisions like that don’t have to be made. It applies to Pontiac just like it applies to substance abuse, just like it applies to a lot of other things.”

Madigan spokesman Steve Brown said the administration hasn’t previously made the case that adding more money to the budget would allow Pontiac to stay open.

"These are the remarks of a confused person who is under a lot of pressure," Brown said.

The House and Senate return to action Tuesday, but budget problems are not on the agenda. Rather, the governor wants lawmakers to discuss education funding reform and a statewide construction program.

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