Palmer Correctional Center

A mixed-custody (medium and minimum) state prison for men in the Palmer area of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. It reopened in August 2021 after closing in 2016 and holds men, most of them sentenced. It is a separate facility from the pretrial-only Mat-Su Pretrial Facility, which is also in the Palmer area.

Overview

Palmer Correctional Center is a state prison for men operated by the Alaska Department of Corrections. It is in the Palmer area of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, north of Anchorage. The facility houses men in a mix of medium and minimum custody and has a capacity of about 500.

Because Alaska has a unified corrections system and no county jail system, the state DOC operates both pretrial detention and prisons for sentenced people; Palmer Correctional Center holds men who are serving sentences along with some who are awaiting trial, and most of the population is sentenced. Alaska DOC assigns one of four custody levels — Community, Minimum, Medium, or Close — based on factors that include risk and needs, and a person’s custody level can change during incarceration. The custody class and housing unit held at a given prison affect visiting arrangements, so families confirm the arrangement that applies to the specific person before a first visit.

What Makes the Palmer Correctional Center Different

Palmer Correctional Center closed in 2016 and reopened on August 16, 2021. While it was closed, the facility was renovated and additional beds were added, and it returned to service holding men in medium and minimum custody, most of them serving sentences. Because of the gap, an older directory or a person’s earlier records may reflect the years the prison was not in use.

The facility is also distinct from the Mat-Su Pretrial Facility, a separate prison that is likewise in the Palmer area of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. The Mat-Su Pretrial Facility holds only people who are awaiting trial, while Palmer Correctional Center is primarily a prison for sentenced men. Because both are in the same area and serve the Mat-Su region, families confirm which facility a person is actually in on VINELink before traveling or sending mail or money.

Visiting

The statewide AK DOC rules above — the approved visitor list, the dress code, ID, and item limits — apply at the Palmer Correctional Center. The facility’s own arrangements:

Getting There and Parking

Palmer Correctional Center is at Mile 58 Old Glenn Highway, in the Palmer area of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. It is reached by road north of Anchorage by way of the Glenn Highway and the Old Glenn Highway through the Palmer and Sutton area. The nearest large commercial airport is in Anchorage to the south.

Parking is on site. Visitors confirm current entry procedures, the visitor-processing location, and what may be brought onto the grounds with the facility before arriving, because electronic devices and personal items are generally not permitted inside.

Nearby Services

The Palmer area has lodging, dining, fuel, and shopping, with a wider range of options in the nearby Wasilla area and the largest selection in the Anchorage area to the south. Emergency medical care is available in the Mat-Su area, with larger hospitals in the Anchorage area. Visitors traveling a long distance generally find the most options for food, fuel, and overnight stays in the Palmer–Wasilla corridor and in Anchorage.

Mail

Alaska DOC does not use an off-site mail vendor. Incoming personal mail goes directly to the facility, where mail staff open and inspect it for contraband before delivery. Address personal mail with the person’s full name and prisoner number, the facility name, and the facility’s mailing address:

[Prisoner’s full name and number] Palmer Correctional Center PO Box 919 Palmer, AK 99645

Use a plain white envelope and white paper, and write only in blue or black ink or pencil. Mail without a complete return address that includes the sender’s name is destroyed. Greeting cards must be commercially produced, single-fold, on standard card stock, and no larger than 6 by 8 inches. Photographs must be printed on plain white or photographic paper and unaltered. Stickers, labels, glitter, tape, and anything attached with adhesive are not allowed (postal-service labels are an exception), and sexually explicit material is prohibited.

Legal and other privileged mail (for example, mail with an attorney) goes to the facility marked “Privileged” and is handled separately. Books, magazines, newspapers, and other publications must be ordered from an approved vendor and shipped directly to the facility — a family member can place the order, but the person must have funds to pay for it in advance. Packages are accepted only from approved vendors through the commissary; friends and family cannot send gift packages. Contact the facility for its current approved-vendor list.

Learn More

• Visiting an Alaska prison — Approved visitor lists, the per-facility scheduling and appointment norms, dress code, ID, and what to expect at remote facilities.
• Sending mail in Alaska — How to address personal mail to the facility, the white-envelope rules, and how to order books, publications, and packages from approved vendors.
• Phone calls and video in Alaska — Setting up a Securus AdvanceConnect account, how calls are billed, free monthly calls, and the rules on three-way and forwarded calls.
• Sending money in Alaska — How to put money on an Offender Trust Account in person or by mail, who is allowed to deposit, accepted forms, and the monthly limit.
• Medical care in Alaska prisons — How health, dental, and mental-health care work in DOC facilities, co-pay amounts, and how to request care.
• Intake, classification, and transfers in Alaska — The booking process, the four custody levels, and how people are housed in Alaska’s unified jail-and-prison system.