Deval Patrick, left, shakes hands with U.S. Sen. John Kerry, at the Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown.

October 24, 2006 On a crisp fall day, thousands of people with disabilities from across the state traveled to the Perkins School in Watertown to meet candidate-for-Governor Deval Patrick. Standing alongside Senator John Kerry, Patrick spoke to the crowd, while  volunteers passed out literature on which a number of disability-related commitments were printed, among them:

Specifically, I will work to:

Assure Community-Based Long Term Care. In Massachusetts today, people in need of long-term care often receive that care in institutional settings, when they would rather remain at home or in community settings. I will reverse that trend and provide more long-term care at home, fully and promptly enforcing the Equal Choice Law and the 1999 Supreme Court's Olmstead decision.

Develop Affordable Housing Options. We will dramatically expand the range of housing options for people with disabilities, from home ownership, rental, congregate living and assisted living environments. We will also double the size of the Home Modifications Program and the Community Based Housing program to enable more people with disabilities, including children and seniors, to live in their own homes.

T-22 funds, salaries, community-based housing development for people with disabilities have all sustained cuts in the last year.

If Fernald remains open, it, and the other 5 remaining institutions, will drain even more resources away from the community.  People living at Fernald are guaranteed a lifetime of quality services as protected members of the 1993 Consent Decrees  -  protections that will follow them wherever they are served.

One reason it is so expensive to serve consent decree members residing in institutions is the high cost of maintaining quality services within structures that are decades past each building's life cycle.

At 155 years old, Fernald is the oldest institution in the Western Hemisphere. The newest construction is over 40 years old, well past the lifespan for such buildings. The last major renovation occurred in the early 1980s.

Cities and towns throughout the state have concluded the most cost-effective way to make public school buildings of similar age comply with contemporary code requirements is to dismantle and rebuild them.

Since that is not an option under Judge Tauro's ruling, a full renovation would be necessary, plus normal capital expenditures associated with Fernald's upkeep into the future.

In 2002, a report was generated by a working group of state officials and community advocates, entitled: Report Of the DMR Strategic Plan Working Group. According to the report, the cost of renovating Fernald was estimated to fall within the range of $25 million to $93 million (in February 2006 dollars).

Some members of the working group vigorously disagreed with the report's conclusions, including the cost of renovating Fernald. This sub-group, comprised of members of The Arc, Massachusetts Families Organizing for Change, and Massachusetts Advocates Standing Strong, produced a minority report, estimating that a conservative figure for renovations would be $210 million.

Regardless of which cost-estimates you believe, the fact is, without having yet spent a dime renovating Fernald, many community-based housing programs for people with disabilities, including those pegged for expansion by candidate Patrick, have been cut significantly in the Governor's recent capital spending plan, as outlined in a memo sent to the Governor by the Building Blocks Coalition, a group of respected housing advocacy organizations.

The Arc believes everyone deserves quality services.  Although we have been involved in many court actions, we advocate for ALL people w/intellectual & developmental disabilities, regardless of their legal status, whether they be Rolland, Boulet, or Ricci (consent decree) members.

That is why we support policies we feel are the most equitable and cost-efficient.