The State of Arkansas buys 815 acres of land in Charleston, just east of Fort Smith, in order to build a new prison.

 The state made the purchase for $2.95 million in order to build the new corrections facility with the hopes of easing the backlog of state inmates in county jails. The state Board of Corrections will need to approve the prison site before construction can begin. Officials have not indicated how much the new prison will cost nor when construction might be slated to begin. In March 2023, Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders called for state funds to be set aside to increase the number of available prison beds and lawmakers eventually set aside $330 million for such projects.

About 2,500 state inmates are currently being housed in county jails across the state of Arkansas. A new prison in Charleston is expected to add about 800 jobs in the area with an average salary of $46,000 a year.