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Fate of Ogdensburg psych center to be announced this week

Posted 7/8/13

By JIMMY LAWTON OGDENSBURG -- The fate of the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center – and about 500 jobs -- should be announced this week, according to the Office of Mental Health. Members of a task …

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Fate of Ogdensburg psych center to be announced this week

Posted

By JIMMY LAWTON

OGDENSBURG -- The fate of the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center – and about 500 jobs -- should be announced this week, according to the Office of Mental Health.

Members of a task force focused on keeping the facility open remain hopeful that the center will become one of the state's "Regional Centers of Excellence," rather than face closure.

Details regarding the Regional Centers of Excellence Plan were originally expected to be released today, but a press release on the Office of Mental Health website has now modified that date to "the week of July 8."

Many fear the plan will include the closure of Ogdensburg’s St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center.

Local efforts to support the facility in recent months included the collection of more than 15,000 post cards calling on Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo to keep the Ogdensburg center open.

The area’s four colleges, clergy members, labor leaders and politicians have also supported the task force.

The facility offers services to multiple counties and provides jobs to more than 500 people.

Task force members say its importance to the area is multi-faceted and its closure would be devastating to people receiving treatments, the local economy and the local colleges.