New London - Some of the people who would benefit from a proposed comprehensive homeless center at a former prison in Niantic are not that keen on the idea.

"You'll receive a prison sentence without being sentenced,'' said a homeless man who was reading a novel Monday evening on a bench in downtown New London. "You'll be in prison without due process.''

City Councilor Michael Buscetto III, who is a candidate for mayor, has proposed converting the former J.B. Gates Correctional Institution in Niantic, which closed June 1, into a regional comprehensive center for homeless individuals, families and veterans.

The plan, which was released Friday, does not yet include any cost estimates or have the backing of any of the 22 cities and towns that he proposes help create the center.

For a handful of people who stay at the homeless shelter at St. James Church, the idea of turning a prison into a "life advancement center" is "crazy" and "insane."

"It takes away a lot of freedoms that any human being needs,'' said one woman, adding that people would be isolated, miles from possible jobs and public transportation.

Some wondered Monday about the logistics of the idea. How would people get there and what would they do once they arrived? How would the working homeless get to their jobs?

The homeless people who agreed to talk did not want to give their names because of the stigma attached to being homeless, but many said that no matter how the buildings are renovated, it still amounts to a prison.

They said they could not attend Monday's City Council meeting because they needed to be in the shelter before 7 p.m. to secure their beds for the night. The doors close at 8 p.m. and if they leave they can't get back in, they explained.

Buscetto's idea is to retrofit the former medium security prison in the Niantic section of East Lyme into a variety of services to accommodate 350 homeless people. Social services, counseling. medical services and alcohol and drug rehabilitation would be located at the center under his plan.

Buscetto brought the proposal to the City Council Monday to refer to the Public Safety Commission, which he chairs, for further discussion.

The council approved Councilor Wade Hyslop's recommendation to send the proposal to the Public Welfare Committee.

"I think the Public Welfare Committee deals with all these issues rather than the Public Works Committee,'' he said.

The committee will also have a big job ahead getting the surrounding 22 towns to commit to the idea, Hyslop said.

Councilor Michael Passero is chairman of the Public Welfare Committee.

Resident David Hayes said the idea has potential "but it needs an awful lot of work.''

"I don't personally think it will work,'' he told the council.

k.edgecomb@theday.com