Olympic Village Became Federal Prison

For the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, organizers built the Olympic Village with the explicit plan to convert it into a federal prison after the Games, after Congress required an after-use contract for the federally funded facility. The village contained 937 small cells for two to four athletes, most with barred windows and heavy steel doors, prompting delegations from Sweden, Italy, Austria, East Germany, West Germany, and other countries to seek accommodations elsewhere. After the Olympics, the complex became FCI Ray Brook and accepted its first federal inmates later in 1980.

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