A timeline, a budget and a design have finally been locked in for a new high-security youth detention centre, two years after it was promised in the wake of Cleveland Dodd’s death at Unit 18.

But the new $158 million facility isn’t expected to open until late 2028 and Unit 18 — described as “inhumane” and like “a war zone” during an inquest into Cleveland’s suicide — won’t close until it does.

Corrective Services Minister Paul Papalia denied the overhaul was taking too long and leaving juvenile offenders at risk.

“Hopefully they could do it faster. We’ll know more once the tenders responded to but ultimately, it’s a big project,” he said.

“It’s a complex one. It is partly why it’s taken this time to prepare the design, because it is a very complex, very specific build.

“Until then, U

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