PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - GOP Gov. Paul LePage’s administration says Bangor will be the home of a new secure psychiatric facility for patients in state custody who no longer need hospital care.
Democratic and Republican lawmakers had agreed to hold hearings in January on plans to build the $3.5 million privately run facility in Augusta.
But LePage said lawmakers were playing political games and stalling efforts to free needed psychiatric beds. Legislative leaders won’t have oversight of the facility’s construction if it’s built outside Augusta.
The Portland Press Herald (https://bit.ly/2hXTWqd ) reports the facility would be built on a 6.28 acre parcel near the state’s 51-bed Dorothea Dix Psychiatric Center.
LePage spokesman Peter Steele didn’t respond to The Associated Press’s questions Friday, including how much it’ll cost to move the site to Bangor.
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