OGDENSBURG – A new website and online petition to support St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center, is at www.savethecenter.net.

The petition and comments will be brought to the center and a May 15 “listening session” by state mental health officials.

The center is believed threatened by plans in the state budget and by the Office of Mental Health (OMH) to cut expenses.

State Sen. Patty Ritchie is urging the public to visit the site and add comments about the center’s importance to North Country health care, as well as the region’s economy.

“For more than 120 years, St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center has quietly played a major role in helping to improve the lives of generations of North Country families and individuals, giving them strength when they needed it most, and consistently serving as a mainstay of our region’s economy with hundreds of good, stable jobs,” Ritchie said.

“Now, St. Lawrence Psych Center needs the community’s support as the state seeks to streamline its system of mental health care, to make Albany aware of the North Country’s unique challenges of health care access, the tradition of quality service provided by the center, and the important role that it plays in improving the quality of life in our region,” said Ritchie.

The website includes a link to register to attend or participate in the OMH officials’ appearance at the center, 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday, May 15 at the facility’s Unity Center.

The text of the petition follows:

“NY's Office of Mental Health is studying changes to the way it delivers mental health services, including consolidating services into “Regional Centers of Excellence.” With 500 jobs at our St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center—the only public, full-service mental health center north of the Thruway, serving seven counties—there’s there’s a lot on the line. Sign this petition to show your support for St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center, and 500 North Country jobs.”

“I support St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center, the only full-service center serving seven counties north of the Thruway,” the petition concludes.