A new juvenile correctional center is set to open in Milwaukee County this month.
The Milwaukee County Center for Youth is an expansion of the existing Vel R. Phillips Youth and Family Justice Center in Wauwatosa. It’s categorized by the state as a secure residential care center for children and youth. The county received over $28 million in grant funding from the state for its construction following the passage of Wisconsin Act 185 in 2017.
That law was passed in an effort to replace the long-troubled Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake youth prisons in northern Wisconsin. The goal was to close those facilities and open up new smaller centers closer to higher-population communities…