The Citizen

AUBURN - Throop resident Toni Turner doesn't want to see Cayuga County's Community Mental Health Clinic continue to get the short end of the stick.

As it stands now, the clinic has a lack of therapeutic space and offers a “warehouse atmosphere” with little light or room, and the Legislature's proposed renovations may not be the absolute fix to the facility's problems, Turner said at Tuesday's Legislature meeting.

“Putting a few coats of paint on the walls and expanding the very much-needed office space at the mental health clinic are not going to make a more consumer-acceptable atmosphere,” said

Turner, chairperson of the Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness Advisory Council of New York State. “No matter what you do to that building, it is not an atmosphere that is conducive to even semi-good mental health for both recipients of services and the professionals who have to work there.”

Turner made the remarks shortly before the Legislature voted to enter into an agreement with Beardsley Design Associates so that the firm can draw up design plans for renovations and additions to the clinic, located at 157 Genesee St., Auburn, in the basement of the Historic Post Office. Costs for such services are not to exceed $24,400.

Earlier this year, the clinic was placed into the state's lowest certification category due to nine citations, many of them involving inadequate office space. Cayuga County faces a variety of sanctions if the citations - some of them repeat offenses - are not corrected.

Though there had been concerns that the current clinic could not be reworked to meet the state's standards, a recent space study by Beardsley shows that portions of the clinic currently used for storage can be better utilized, while external areas of the building now covered can be enclosed.

The facility would increase from 4,750 to 8,000 square feet, according to Legislature Chairman George Fearon, R-Springport.

Fearon assured Turner that renovations would address many of her concerns, including a lack of fire exits and windows. The county has been working with the state office of mental health and the state historic preservation office to ensure compliance with all of the issues, Fearon said.

“We're not trying to do anything that's a second-rate job with that facility,” he added. “I think we can end up with a facility that we could be very proud of.”

Turner said Fearon's comments hadn't changed her mind about the facility, but that she was looking forward to seeing the clinic's plans and to any further discussion.

In other news:

- Despite reservations by some, the Legislature approved the issuance of request for proposals for professional services to provide a space study of several county areas, including the old jail and court house annex.

Ray Lockwood, R-Aurelius, called the study an “unnecessary waste of time and money” and questioned the need to do one when there are already “volumes” of similar studies in the clerk's office. He proposed doing the study in-house.

Chris Palermo, R-Sterling, supported Lockwood's suggestion but said that the planning department is short-staffed. He voted for the resolution but noted his suspicion of space studies in general.

“I can see where you can spend