Craggy Correctional Center Mailing Address: 2992 Riverside Drive, Asheville, NC 28804Street Address: 22 Canoe Lane, Asheville, NC 28804Phone: 828-645-5315Minimum Unit Phone: 828-645-7630County: BuncombeOffender capacity: Medium Custody Facility, 416; Minimum Custody Facility, 182Facility Type: Male, Medium and Minimum Custodies LIMITED VISITATION RESUMES OCT. 1, 2020 The Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice will resume limited visitation at all state’s prisons effective Oct. 1, 2020 with significant restrictions due to the pandemic. Visitation was suspended in all state prisons on March 16, 2020, with the exception of legal and pastoral visits, to help prevent the potential spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). The health and safety of employees and offenders in our care are the top priorities of the Department of Public Safety. For information on coronavirus and how to protect yourself, please go the NC Department of Health and Human Services website. To learn what else Prisons is doing to combat coronavirus, click here. For more information on visitation, click here. Directions Take I-40 toward Asheville, then take I-240 from either direction east or west. Take the Weaverville exit off of I-240 onto I-26 west /U.S. 19/23 north. Follow I-26 west /U.S. 19/23 north to the Woodfin/Merrimon Ave. exit. At the bottom of the ramp, make a right turn, followed by an immediate left turn at the traffic signal. Go 1.3 miles and take a left onto the Old Marshall Highway. Go approximately 1.6 miles to the first stop sign. Go straight at the stop sign, crossing Highway 251, which will be the Buncombe/Craggy Access Road. The first facility in approximately a half-mile is the minimum custody unit, and the medium custody facility is approximately a half-mile beyond. SENDING MAIL TO OFFENDERS The N.C. Department of Public Safety has changed the way offenders receive mail. To help keep contraband out of prisons, all mail to offenders must be sent through a private company, TextBehind. You must address mail to offenders in this way, or it will be returned: Offender Name and OPUS Number Prison Name P.O. Box 247 Phoenix, MD 21131 Examples: John Doe #1234567 Jane Doe #7654321 Polk Correctional Institution N.C. Correctional Institution for Women P.O. Box 247 P.O. Box 247 Phoenix, MD 21131 Phoenix, MD 21131 IMPORTANT: The return address (at the top left of the envelope) must contain both the full first name and the full last name of the sender. Do not use initials. TextBehind will return mail that does not provide the sender's full first and last names. The state’s prisons for women have been using TextBehind since February 2020. Here’s how it works: Offender mail is addressed and delivered to TextBehind. TextBehind will make digital copies of the contents. TextBehind will forward the digital files to the prison. The prison will print acceptable pages and deliver them to the offender. You may also download the TextBehind app to send mail by a smartphone or computer, avoiding paper mail sent via the U.S. Postal Service. Offenders will continue to receive all acceptable contents of the mail you send — letters, photos, cards, artwork, etc. For more information about TextBehind, including a short video, click here. Click here for Frequently Asked Questions. TextBehind will not accept packages or legal mail. For more information on sending packages or legal mail, see the FAQs. You can also contact the prison where the offender is currently assigned. All Prison facilities encourage family and friends to write to offenders. For security reasons, all incoming mail is checked to see if it contains any illegal or unauthorized items. Outgoing mail from offenders may also be checked. Personal letters will not be read unless the officer-in-charge or designee has reason to believe the letter contains threats of harm or criminal activity, escape plans or plans to violate prison rules. If the officer-in-charge decides to delay or not deliver the letter to the offender, the offender will be told in writing the reason for this action. Incoming mail from lawyers, any legal aid service assisting offenders, or state and federal court officials must be opened in the presence of the offender before it is checked for illegal or unauthorized items. For information regarding sending money to offenders, ordering packages for offenders or about the offender telephone system, please click the links. Overview Craggy Correctional Center, located near Asheville, is a medium/minimum security prison for adult males. In March 2014, it consolidated with Buncombe Correctional Center to house adult males in medium and minimum custody. The prison has three dormitories and seven support buildings. Craggy was the first state prison to install an electronic intrusion system security fence to alert staff of attempted perimeter breaches or escapes. Chapels at both the medium and minimum custody units were built with funds from churches and the community. The chapel at the minimum custody unit was dedicated in 2015 and named the New Life Center. Inmates may participate in the A New Direction Program, formerly known as the Drug Alcohol Recovery Treatment (DART) program. AND is an intensive inpatient treatment in a fast-moving 28-day treatment cycle with lectures, films, educational and therapy groups, as well as individual counseling. Inmates work with professional staff and peer counselors. AND relies heavily on the principles of Alcoholics and Narcotics Anonymous with group meetings available in the evenings. Asheville/Buncombe Technical Community College works with the prison to provide vocational classes in Food Service Technology and Facility Maintenance. Classes for adult education and preparation for the GED are also available. Still operating at the old prison site is a Correction Enterprises laundry. Other inmate medium-custody assignments include Department of Transportation road crews, facility maintenance, janitorial, groundskeeping and food service positions. The Old Craggy Prison was dedicated in May 1924 by the Buncombe County Commissioners, Craggy was one of 51 county prisons that the state assumed responsibility for with the passage of the Conner Bill in 1931. It was one of 61 prisons renovated or built during the late 1930s to house inmates who worked building roads.
Craggy Correctional Center Mailing Address: 2992 Riverside Drive, Asheville, NC 28804Street Address: 22 Canoe Lane, Asheville, NC 28804Phone: 828-645-5315Minimum Unit Phone: 828-645-7630County: BuncombeOffender capacity: Medium Custody Facility, 416; Minimum Custody Facility, 182Facility Type: Male, Medium and Minimum Custodies LIMITED VISITATION RESUMES OCT. 1, 2020 The Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice will resume limited visitation at all state’s prisons effective Oct. 1, 2020 with significant restrictions due to the pandemic. Visitation was suspended in all state prisons on March 16, 2020, with the exception of legal and pastoral visits, to help prevent the potential spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). The health and safety of employees and offenders in our care are the top priorities of the Department of Public Safety. For information on coronavirus and how to protect yourself, please go the NC Department of Health and Human Services website. To learn what else Prisons is doing to combat coronavirus, click here. For more information on visitation, click here. Directions Take I-40 toward Asheville, then take I-240 from either direction east or west. Take the Weaverville exit off of I-240 onto I-26 west /U.S. 19/23 north. Follow I-26 west /U.S. 19/23 north to the Woodfin/Merrimon Ave. exit. At the bottom of the ramp, make a right turn, followed by an immediate left turn at the traffic signal. Go 1.3 miles and take a left onto the Old Marshall Highway. Go approximately 1.6 miles to the first stop sign. Go straight at the stop sign, crossing Highway 251, which will be the Buncombe/Craggy Access Road. The first facility in approximately a half-mile is the minimum custody unit, and the medium custody facility is approximately a half-mile beyond. SENDING MAIL TO OFFENDERS The N.C. Department of Public Safety has changed the way offenders receive mail. To help keep contraband out of prisons, all mail to offenders must be sent through a private company, TextBehind. You must address mail to offenders in this way, or it will be returned: Offender Name and OPUS Number Prison Name P.O. Box 247 Phoenix, MD 21131 Examples: John Doe #1234567 Jane Doe #7654321 Polk Correctional Institution N.C. Correctional Institution for Women P.O. Box 247 P.O. Box 247 Phoenix, MD 21131 Phoenix, MD 21131 IMPORTANT: The return address (at the top left of the envelope) must contain both the full first name and the full last name of the sender. Do not use initials. TextBehind will return mail that does not provide the sender's full first and last names. The state’s prisons for women have been using TextBehind since February 2020. Here’s how it works: Offender mail is addressed and delivered to TextBehind. TextBehind will make digital copies of the contents. TextBehind will forward the digital files to the prison. The prison will print acceptable pages and deliver them to the offender. You may also download the TextBehind app to send mail by a smartphone or computer, avoiding paper mail sent via the U.S. Postal Service. Offenders will continue to receive all acceptable contents of the mail you send — letters, photos, cards, artwork, etc. For more information about TextBehind, including a short video, click here. Click here for Frequently Asked Questions. TextBehind will not accept packages or legal mail. For more information on sending packages or legal mail, see the FAQs. You can also contact the prison where the offender is currently assigned. All Prison facilities encourage family and friends to write to offenders. For security reasons, all incoming mail is checked to see if it contains any illegal or unauthorized items. Outgoing mail from offenders may also be checked. Personal letters will not be read unless the officer-in-charge or designee has reason to believe the letter contains threats of harm or criminal activity, escape plans or plans to violate prison rules. If the officer-in-charge decides to delay or not deliver the letter to the offender, the offender will be told in writing the reason for this action. Incoming mail from lawyers, any legal aid service assisting offenders, or state and federal court officials must be opened in the presence of the offender before it is checked for illegal or unauthorized items. For information regarding sending money to offenders, ordering packages for offenders or about the offender telephone system, please click the links. Overview Craggy Correctional Center, located near Asheville, is a medium/minimum security prison for adult males. In March 2014, it consolidated with Buncombe Correctional Center to house adult males in medium and minimum custody. The prison has three dormitories and seven support buildings. Craggy was the first state prison to install an electronic intrusion system security fence to alert staff of attempted perimeter breaches or escapes. Chapels at both the medium and minimum custody units were built with funds from churches and the community. The chapel at the minimum custody unit was dedicated in 2015 and named the New Life Center. Inmates may participate in the A New Direction Program, formerly known as the Drug Alcohol Recovery Treatment (DART) program. AND is an intensive inpatient treatment in a fast-moving 28-day treatment cycle with lectures, films, educational and therapy groups, as well as individual counseling. Inmates work with professional staff and peer counselors. AND relies heavily on the principles of Alcoholics and Narcotics Anonymous with group meetings available in the evenings. Asheville/Buncombe Technical Community College works with the prison to provide vocational classes in Food Service Technology and Facility Maintenance. Classes for adult education and preparation for the GED are also available. Still operating at the old prison site is a Correction Enterprises laundry. Other inmate medium-custody assignments include Department of Transportation road crews, facility maintenance, janitorial, groundskeeping and food service positions. The Old Craggy Prison was dedicated in May 1924 by the Buncombe County Commissioners, Craggy was one of 51 county prisons that the state assumed responsibility for with the passage of the Conner Bill in 1931. It was one of 61 prisons renovated or built during the late 1930s to house inmates who worked building roads.
