(Caro) – Tuscola County community leaders and area officials will hold a press conference Friday at 10 a.m. to discuss impacts of potential changes regarding the Caro Regional Center. The meeting will be held at the Tuscola County officers in Caro. The draft 2018 state budget currently includes approximately $115 million to build a new State Psychiatric Facility, but it is unknown whether the state will build this new facility here in Tuscola County to replace the current Caro Regional Center or if it will be built somewhere else in the state.
State decisions are expected any day since the state budget is normally completed and adopted in early June. The prospect of this facility moving and the loss of the critical economic benefits it provides to this area is alarming and overwhelming.
This operation has been here for over 100 years and is the second largest employer in the county. It directly employs 349 and indirectly employs another 398 while providing $54 million to the area economy.
According to a recent economic impact study the loss of this facility would be a crushing blow and result in the current 7.9% county unemployment rate skyrocketing to an estimated 14.7%.
These jobs are critical to the survival of this area which is already distressed and struggling with population losses, school enrollment declines and increasing numbers of people receiving public assistance because of lack of employment opportunities. The loss of these jobs would be devastating.
We will also discuss the compelling reasons why the new facility should be built here. The Caro Regional Center is centrally located to patients and families. The vast majority of patients come from counties bordering on Tuscola County.
Genesee County has 37 patients and Oakland County has 48 patients at the facility. Both of these counties are just to the south of the facility location in Tuscola County. It is estimated 70% of employees travel 30 miles or less to work. Buildable land, infrastructure and medical facilities are already available in the current location.
This State Psychiatric facility is accepted in the community. It makes tremendous sense and it is absolutely critical that the new facility is built here.
