JOB FAIR DRAWS HUNDREDS
For Construction of Blackwater River Correctional Facility

More than 700 people turned out on April 15 for a job fair held by Workforce Escarosa, in conjunction with White Construction and TEAM Santa Rosa. The participants were seeking to be a part of the team that will work on the construction of the new, privately operated Blackwater River Correctional Facility in Santa Rosa County. Seven of the project’s subcontractors were present to discuss their businesses, answer questions and take applications for the various jobs have come as a result of the prison construction.

“The job fair was a great success in connecting local job-seekers with the people actively looking for employees,” said Eric Flora, Business Services Representative with Workforce Escarosa.

The GEO Group, Inc. earned a contract from the State of Florida to build and operate the new prison, which is designed to conform with the strict Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards of the US Green Building Council (USGBC). GEO committed to use as much local labor as possible in the construction and operation of the facility.

White Construction is the prime contractor for the job and the company has selected subcontractors for much of the actual construction. As the project draws nearer to completion, GEO intends to hold additional job fairs for permanent, non-construction jobs such as corrections officers.