Supporters of Michener Centre will march down Ross Street straight to Red Deer North MLA Mary Anne Jablonski’s office on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.
Friends of Michener Centre and Alberta Union of Provincial Employees are calling on the public to join Michener residents, family, and staff in the protest against closing the long-standing facility for the developmentally disabled.
Participants will meet at Coronation Park, at 4540 Ross St., and will walk to Jablonski’s office at 4814 Ross St.
The province announced in March that the centre for people with development disabilities will close and that 125 residents from there will be relocated, starting in September. A target is to have them moved out by 2014. Another 105 residents who already live in Michener Hill group homes will be allowed to stay.
The announcement to close Michener was unexpected. In 2008, the province promised that residents could remain at Michener until they die.
The average age of Michener residents is 60.
The province says it will save $110,000 per person when the 125 residents are moved out and the $1.4 million in savings would be reinvested in the Persons with Developmental Disabilities (PDD) system.
AUPE anticipates as many as 400 of Michener’s 640 staff will be laid off, redeployed or retrained.
Jason Heistad, AUPE vice-president, said keeping Michener open to remaining residents has a lot of support in Central Alberta.
“People realize the importance of the facility and the specialized help that is there at Michener Centre. Those services cannot be attained in other facilities. That’s why the support is there,” Heistad said.
Earlier this month, Penhold town council followed Red Deer city council and voted unanimously to oppose the closure.
On Monday, Innisfail town council voted unanimously to send a letter to Premier Alison Redford to keep Michener open.
“There is a letter going off. We were just drafting it up today to send it off to the provincial authorities to ask them to reconsider,” said Innisfail Mayor Jim Romane.
Red Deer Public School District has also called on the province to stop the closure.
Bill Lough, president of Society of Parents and Friends of Michener Services, said until now Jablonski has publicly supported Michener.
“We just feel she should stand up for what Michener has represented to the residents and the people of Red Deer,” Lough said.
A Michener rally held on April 10 at Red Deer City Hall attracted about 250 people, including united support from Alberta NDP, Liberal and Wildrose parties.
Names are still being gathered for a petition calling on government to reverse its decision.
For petition information, visit www.keepmicheneropen.com.
szielinski@www.reddeeradvocate.com