Mat-Su Youth Facility
581 Outer Springer Loop Rd
Palmer, AK 99645
Phone: 907 746-1630
Fax: 907 761-7249
The Mat-Su Youth Facility was designed and operates within a Restorative Justice framework. The local juvenile probation office is co-located with the 15-bed secure detention unit at the facility; combining detention and probation services in one facility has enabled effective victim service coordination and adequate supervision of youth being released back into the community. Programs are continuing to develop that touch on all aspects of restorative justice: public safety, restoration of victims and communities, and competency development.
The facility’s construction and opening was the culmination of a community-wide planning process that began in the mid-1990s. The community’s participation in the facility’s work continues through an active Citizens Advisory Board and strong partnerships with organizations such as the Mat-Su Borough School District, the Mat-Su Recovery Center, the Juvenile Assessment Center, and many others.
The facility serves the needs of a wide geographic and demographic area of the state that extends from Talkeetna to the north, the Copper River communities eastward, and the towns of Valdez and Cordova to the south. The population of the district is approximately 66,000 people.
A variety of community service projects are ongoing within the facility which include stuffing envelopes for nonprofits, art work for the local library, a bulletin board for the local family shelter and Christmas stocking assembly for social service organizations. Victim impact classes also are taught on the unit, and evening educational instruction is provided as an alternative to detention through the Facility's Probation Night School.