WEBVTT

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The whole thing started while

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I was Ombudsman, and there was

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an effort to start, at least,

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closing Faribault RTC in 1992.

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And that basically encountered

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some stiff political resistance

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and really got nowhere.

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And the Governor wanted to...

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was hoping that perhaps an

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interagency effort, not just the

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Department of Human Services,

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might be successful. The other

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thing is the Regional Treatment

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Centers are all, in most

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cases, located in fairly small

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communities around the state

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and certainly have a very,

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had had a very significant

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economic impact in their communities.

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And I think a number of

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legislators were seeing that

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deinstitutionalization was the

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trend and were very concerned

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about what that would do to the

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economy of their districts and

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some of the towns in their

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districts. And that's actually

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what got the whole effort at

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Moose Lake going. The legislators

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from the Moose Lake area

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really were very far thinking.

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They were seeing the day when

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perhaps the Regional Treatment

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Center would close, would

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have probably a very devastating

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impact on their community,

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and they were looking for ways

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to perhaps allow that transition

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to occur that would be good

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for the residents in the

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Regional Treatment Center and

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also good for the members of the

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community. So, I guess we commenced

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on what I, in retrospect,

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consider a huge mediation.

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We put together an interagency

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team. I think at one point we

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counted 12 different State

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agencies were involved. And we

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negotiated with 14 Counties,

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many cities, four or five labor

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unions, both houses of the

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Legislature, and the Governor's office.

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So... and I guess my job

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in the whole thing was to try

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to mediate and find solutions.

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And it was really very challenging

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and, in retrospect,

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I think the most rewarding thing

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that's happened to me in the

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last ten years. I feel better

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about the result there than

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perhaps anything I've been

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able to do in State government.