MANDAN, ND (KXNET) - Construction is moving full speed ahead on the Heart River Correctional Center, North Dakota’s first prison built specifically for women, and it’s set to change how the state approaches incarceration and rehabilitation.

The $166.8 million project broke ground in April 2025 in Mandan. When it opens in October 2027, the 191,500-square-foot facility will hold 304 inmates; giving North Dakota’s current more than 280 incarcerated women a space designed with them in mind.

The new prison will include mental health and medical units, education and job-training areas, and transitional housing for women preparing to reenter society. There will be eight units, and each housing unit will hold 32 inmates, with programs ranging from intake to those serving life.

One of the most t

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