Reopening a troubled youth justice centre once plagued by staff assaults, riots and escapes is a short-sighted and politicised response to community fears, a justice reform advocate says.
The Malmsbury Youth Justice Centre will reopen to house young people held under Victoria's bail law changes, Corrections Minister Enver Erdogan confirmed on Tuesday.
An initial 30 beds at the facility will be available for lower-risk young people aged 17 and over, with the reopening expected to cost $141 million over five years with an extra $4.8 million for upgrading security.
Mr Erdogan said more beds were needed to cope, with remand rates for young people increasing 46 per cent year-on-year.
The Justice Reform Initiative argues reopening such a troubled and unfit facility will do little for community safety and isn't the answer, the advocacy group's executive director Mindy Sotiri said.
"Building or reopening detention facilities in response to rising remand numbers is a disappointing and politicised response to policy failure," she said.
"The rise in Victoria's remand population is not a sign of increased crime; it is a direct consequence of harsher bail laws."
Swinburne criminologist Joel McGregor also criticised the reopening, saying it was damaging to keep young people in custody and the money should instead be spent on early diversion and intervention programs.
"There were some really serious incidents before it closed, and it's really alarming that they are reopening it, because there are significant trauma histories there for young people," Dr McGregor told AAP.
The facility north of Melbourne originally closed due to a decline in the number of young people in custody and the opening of purpose-built facilities.
After closing in 2023, detainees were transferred to the Melbourne Youth Justice Centre in Melbourne's Parkville and a $420 million facility at Cherry Creek, which features a specialised primary health centre and two mental health units.
Mr Erdogan defended plans to open the Malmsbury facility from early in 2026, insisting the decision to close the site in late 2023 was not a mistake.
"That was the right decision then and this is the right decision now," he told reporters at parliament.
Operational since 1965, Malmsbury has been plagued with problems including inmate riots, staff shortages and escapes.
Months before closing, one youth worker and several inmates were assaulted after a guard's keys were stolen, resulting in three youths being taken to hospital with upper body injuries.
Opposition Leader Brad Battin was critical of the original decision to close Malmsbury as the coalition's then-youth justice spokesman, and described the reboot as "very expensive".
It cost taxpayers $1 million a year to keep a young person in detention, which is money that should be spent on crime prevention and youth programs, Greens leader Ellen Sandell said.
