Facility record · California
Salinas Valley State Prison
SVSP · Soledad · Monterey County
- SecurityLevels III–IV
- Population2,332
- Occupancy95%
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Salinas Valley State Prison (SVSP) is a state prison in Soledad, Monterey County, California. By capacity it is the 10th-largest of the 30 state prison records listed for California with a published capacity. It is one of 6 correctional facilities in Monterey County, and California operates 30 state prisons in total.
Contact & details
CDCR Infrastructure Master Plan, Appendix 1 (May 2026), period ending 30 April 2026
Finding someone first
Nothing below works without two things: confirmation that the person is at Salinas Valley State Prison, and their CDCR number. Book a visit without them and you will be turned away; post a letter without the number and the mailroom cannot route it.
CDCR's public search covers people in CDCR custody. A disclaimer must be accepted before searching, and CDCR states the tool is informational rather than an official record. County jail populations are held separately.
CIRIS — California Incarcerated Records and Information Search ↗
Visiting Salinas Valley State Prison
This is what the institution publishes, in the order you will meet it: when visits run, how to get approved, how to book, when to arrive, and what you may carry in.
When visits run
Open with exceptions · 24 August 2026Get approved
You must be approved before visiting. The incarcerated person first sends you a signed CDCR Form 106 Visiting Questionnaire. Complete that copy, then mail it directly to SVSP’s Visiting office.
Send it to: Salinas Valley State Prison, Attention Visiting, P.O. Box 1020, Soledad, CA 93960-1020. This is the institution/staff address; P.O. Box 1050 is listed by CDCR for incarcerated-person mail.
What not to do: Do not mail the completed questionnaire back to the incarcerated person and do not use the incarcerated-person mail box. Send it directly to SVSP’s Visiting office at the institution address above.
Most prisons use a DIFFERENT address for mail to staff than for mail to an incarcerated person. Use the staff address. A questionnaire sent to the inmate mail address does not reach Visiting.Book through the scheduling application
Contact-eligible visitors may walk in during the published periods. Use VSA for required non-contact appointments and arrive one hour early for a non-contact visit.
Open the Visitation Scheduling Application ↗
Non-contact and restricted-housing visitsNon-contact visiting is not a choice — it is what applies while someone is in reception (newly admitted to CDCR, or just transferred between prisons) or is segregated.
Arrive, and report to visitor processing
Arrive one hour early for non-contact visits. Overnight family visitors check in at the Visiting Processing Center by Tower 1.
Parking: CDCR states that prisons have a separate visitor parking lot, including marked accessible spaces; visitors should follow local signs and allow for a walk or shuttle to processing.
Where to report: Report to the Visiting Processing Center by Tower 1 for family-visit check-in; general visitors should follow on-site visitor-processing signs.
Bring the right things, and only those
Allowed in
- Visitors may bring only the narrow statewide allowance (ID, limited cash, small clear bag, up to two keys, specified papers/photos, and specified infant/medical items). Weapons, drugs, electronics, purses and other unlisted property should remain outside; local restrictions may be stricter.
Identification: Adults must present current valid photo identification (such as a driver license, DMV ID, armed-forces ID, passport, ICE ID, or Mexican consular photo ID). Minors require a certified birth certificate; guardianship or annual notarized consent is also required when applicable.
How many may visit: Maximum five including children for contact visits; maximum three including children for non-contact visits.
Bringing a child: Children under 18 must be accompanied by an approved adult. Bring a certified birth certificate; if the adult is not a parent, also bring proof of guardianship or the required original notarized consent.
Video visits and cost: Weekend institutional video visiting is no longer offered. Tablet video calls are provider-dependent during the ViaPath-to-Securus transition: ViaPath $0.16/min with 15 free minutes every two weeks; Securus $0.10/min with 30 free minutes monthly.
Phone calls, money and mail
Phone calls
You cannot call in. CDCR states that it is up to the incarcerated person to initiate the call, and that calls are limited to 15 minutes. That single fact explains most of what families find confusing: the switchboard will not connect you, there is no voicemail, and a call arriving from an unfamiliar number is normal. What you can do from the outside is make sure the call can reach you — that your number is not blocked by your carrier, that it is not a VoIP or virtual number the system will refuse, and that whatever account arrangement the facility uses is set up and funded before he tries. For anything urgent, a message goes through the institution rather than the phone system.
Putting money on the books
Before anything else you need the person's CDCR number, from California Incarcerated Records and Information Search (CIRIS), and their current location from CDCR's facility locator. CDCR then lists three routes. Electronic funds transfer through one of its vendors: GTL/ConnectNetwork, JPay, or Access Corrections. A lock box deposit, which CDCR states carries no fee when sent by money order, personal check or cashier's check: complete the Money Order Deposit Form with the sender's name and address, make the payment payable to JPay, and mail it to JPay, 2202 South Figueroa St, Box #3001, Los Angeles, CA 90007. CDCR caps this at $999.99 per money order, holds personal checks for ten business days, and warns that any letter or note enclosed with a payment will be discarded. Or send a check or money order to the institution itself. Vendor fees vary by amount and method, so check the vendor's own figure before you send.
Writing to someone here
Anyone may write to a person in a California state prison. Incoming letters are opened and inspected for contraband, then forwarded. CDCR asks that the envelope carry the person's full committed name and CDC number, the institution name, the P.O. box and housing assignment where known (CDCR states housing is preferable), and the city, CA and ZIP. The housing assignment is the part most people do not have: get it, and the CDCR number, from California Incarcerated Records and Information Search (CIRIS), from the institution's Public Information Officer, or from CDCR's Identification Unit. Note that the address mail goes to is not always the institution's street address, so confirm it before posting anything you cannot replace.
Full committed name · CDCR number · housing
Salinas Valley State Prison (SVSP)
Inmate Mail: P. O. Box 1050, Soledad, CA 93960-1050
Getting there, and staying
Soledad is closest; Salinas has more branded inventory but requires a longer Highway 101 drive. Confirm drive time, exact room, accessibility features, parking, deposit and cancellation deadline directly. Monterey-Salinas Transit serves the Salinas Valley and Soledad, including regional Line 23/23X and local Line 32, but the current public route list does not identify SVSP’s visitor entrance as a named stop. Confirm the complete trip and arrange the last mile and return ride before travel.
Confirm the last mile: MST: 1-888-MST-BUS1 or (888) 678-2871. SVSP main line: (831) 678-5500.
Where to stay
These are planning options, not endorsements. Rates and property policies change; ask the property to confirm any accessibility need in the exact room reserved.
Somewhere to eat
| Place | What and when | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Subway — Soledad Mission Shopping Center3016 H Dela Rosa Street, Soledad, CA 93960 | Official page lists 5:00 a.m. weekday and 8:00 a.m. weekend openings; confirm contact details on the location page | |
| Taco Bell1185 Front Street, Soledad, CA 93960 | Breakfast, later meals and drive-through; official page lists 7:00 a.m. opening | (831) 678-9692 |
| McDonald’s1215 S Front Street, Soledad, CA 93960 | Breakfast and later meals; verify current lobby, drive-through hours and contact details on the location page |
Local planning notes
Check the facility visiting-status page immediately before travel because operations can change; also check Caltrans QuickMap for traffic, closures and road conditions.
Inside the institution
A Minimum Support Facility, two 270-design facilities, two 180-design facilities, and a 100-cell standalone Administrative Segregation Unit.
Restricted housing
SVSP has a 100-cell standalone Administrative Segregation Unit; non-contact visits are appointment-only.
Health care, programs and release preparation
These services differ by institution. The details below describe what this prison reports, not a systemwide promise that every person qualifies for every program.
Health care
SVSP has a Correctional Treatment Center, outpatient/inpatient mental health services, CCCMS, EOP, crisis beds, and a licensed Psychiatric Inpatient Program.
Education, training and work
The official page lists educational programs and numerous self-help/volunteer groups, substance-use treatment and rehabilitation programming.
Preparing for release
Programs include Bridges to Freedom, Home After Harm, veterans transition work, substance-use treatment and other preparation for parole/community return.
Reported figures
These are the institution’s own returns to the state, and every group is dated. They have to be: the figures come from separate documents on separate cadences, and reading the whole set as one snapshot would be wrong.
Capacity and population
as at 30 April 2026How the population is housed
as at 30 June 2024Staffing
as at 30 June 2024Education and training
as at 30 June 2024CDCR Infrastructure Master Plan, Appendix 1 (May 2026) (Public record) · California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, SB601 Reporting (CC BY 4.0)
Guides that go wider than this institution
These cover the same ground across every facility in the directory, which is what you want if the person may be moved, or if you are helping someone in a different state.