State direct care workers for some of this state's most profoundly developmentally disabled citizens at Lakeland Village will picket Gov. Chris Gregoire's Spokane office Monday in the wake of a consultant's report calling for a radical downsizing at the Medical Lake facility.
The members of Local 573 of the Washington Federation of State Employees/AFSCME will picket from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., this Monday, Oct. 19, at the Governor's Eastern Washington Regional Office, W. 1611 Indiana in Spokane. Brief remarks and a march will take place starting at about Noon.
The consultant's report released Oct. 14 would shrink Lakeland Village from its current capacity of 238 residents to only 26 over the next eight years. Lakeland and counterparts in Selah and north of Seattle would become smaller skilled nursing facilities only.
The Medical Lake City Council on Oct. 6 officially opposed the closure or downsizing of Lakeland Village and the nearby Pine Lodge Corrections Center for Women. The consultant's report did not recommend any further reductions at Pine Lodge, but community members still believe legislators may target it.
This consultant’s report was mandated by the Legislature to recommend a plan to cut 1,580 beds in Corrections, 235 beds in Juvenile Rehabilitation and 250 beds in the residential habilitation centers. The consultants were Christopher Murray and Associates.
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