By By: Brad Palmer
Carbondale, IL – The executive director of The Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability says he believes both the Illinois Youth Center in Murphysboro and the Chester Mental Health Center have a good chance of staying open.
Dan Long was on the the SIUC campus Thursday. He talked about this week's public hearings and the future of both sites. Long says he believes the IYC will remain open because the building is only 16 years old and could be used for other purposes, such as a minimum security prison within the Illinois Department of Corrections.
Long says he feels even stronger about the future of the Chester Mental Health Center. He says since it's the only facility of its type in the state housing the criminally insane, it would take a change in state law just to close it and transfer the patients elsewhere. Long doesn't see that happening, especially before the proposed March 2012 closure date.
Long says COGFA is supposed to turn in its recommendation for the IYC by November 5th and for the Chester Mental Health Center by November 12th.
