A Prison's Vacancy Neon Sign

I watched some television lately and there is this one interesting place that uses neon signs in such an extraordinary way. It utilizes a vacancy neon signs but it certainly is not an apartment or motel. The place is, in fact, a prison and it promotes vacancy to its facility for all criminals and lawbreakers. The prison facility is located in the desert of Phoenix, Arizona. It has a bright pink neon signs that flashes the word "vacancy" 24/7. Surrounded by very tall 25-foot barbed wire fences, the sign proudly hangs high above the security watch tower manned by powerfully-armed guards. This is the greeting that welcomes criminals and lawbreakers as they enter and get locked up in America's toughest jail - the Tent City.

Inside the Tent City, there are well over a thousand prisoners. It is aptly called Tent City because inside the facility the prisoners live in army surplus tents. They are left to weather the scorching heat of Arizona summer with temperatures reaching 50°C and the cold, freezing temperature during winter. There are no air conditioning units. There are no heaters. The prisoners are provided vile food for their diet. This tough life inside can make most inmates thinking and swearing never to go back in.

The jail has a reputation that no matter how many criminals are locked up there, the vacancy sign never goes off. We know how most prison facilities easily get filled with criminals and law offenders. Sometimes such prison facilities put no vacancy signs and turn away other prisoners. Not in Tent City. The jail warden has a different approach on all criminals. Instead of turning them away, he builds more tents to house them in. Building a concrete facility takes a lot of budget money. It can even cost millions. This ingenious idea of using tents can only cost Arizona taxpayers little money not even reaching a hundred grand. Such a small price to pay to keep their citizens safe.