Madras’ $193 million state prison finally has a name: Deer Ridge Correctional Institution.

Department of Corrections officials unveiled the name in a groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday. Speakers included department director Max Williams, state Rep. John Dallum and state Sen. Ted Ferrioli.

The name doesn’t come from a geographic feature near Madras, or anywhere else in Oregon, said Bobbi Burton, community development director for the corrections department.

”There is no Deer Ridge,” Burton said. ”It’s not named after anyone or anything.”

That’s a benefit, Burton said, because there’s no risk of offending an area already using that name. Williams selected the name with input from Madras’ prison advisory committee, a group made up of local residents.

Until three weeks ago, the corrections department planned to name the 2,000-prisoner facility the Juniper Ridge Correctional Institution, which was uncomfortably close to the name of Bend’s future industrial park and university site.

”We agreed it would probably not be appropriate to name our facility the same as that (project),” Burton said.

The department picked Juniper Ridge from a list of six names generated by the Madras prison advisory committee. The other five names were: Mud Springs, High Desert, Sagebrush Flat, Sage Hills and Willow Creek.

The minimum-security portion of the prison should be completed by December 2006, while the medium-security portion is scheduled to be finished in December 2007.

The prison, located off of Ashwood Road, east of Madras, is expected to employ between 400 and 500 employees, Burton said.

No opening date has been set for the facility.