The County Board chair was making a point about equity, he later explained. He thought the rural majority's support last year for the future development of a mental health facility in Duluth wasn't counting for anything.
He wondered why the board faced Duluth commissioners’ temporary dissent last month on the way to a unanimous vote in support of a new Essentia Health clinic and separate child care development in Jugovich’s hometown of Chisholm.
The News Tribune took his point and spoke with both Jugovich and Duluth Commissioner Patrick Boyle about the comparison between the projects: the one proposed for Chisholm, and the proposed Clarity Behavioral Health Crisis Center, a $7.1 million development being planned around the idea of creating a better regional response to mental health.
Late last year, the County Board unanimously approved the Clarity Project among a list of other 2021 legislative bonding priorities.
Mike Jugovich
“That’s where the similarities lie — what’s good for Duluth is good for the northern part of the county, and good for St. Louis County as a whole,” Jugovich said.
But before signing onto the Chisholm clinic, the Duluth commissioners voted against it, citing a lack of information about the project, including no cost estimates or clear ideas about how much other partners would end up contributing.
At the time, Jugovich was under pressure to get board approval to support the project. Essentia officials told the County Board the project was only awaiting county approval to move forward with a fall opening.
“I do know that they should have had more information,” Jugovich said of Duluth commissioners' desire to learn more, and voting "no" the first time. “But I would say this was not foreign information for anybody. We’ve been having conversations for 18 months.”
The group behind what is known as the Clarity Project includes the county along with Essentia Health, St. Luke’s hospital, Duluth Public Schools, nonprofits and the jail system. There are no prospective site locations or public renderings of what the project would look like, but momentum is building, including $5 million in state bonding already secured after several years of work around the idea.
“It’s happening quickly,” Boyle said about the current direction of the project. He described it as an asset that will serve the entire Arrowhead region, not just the county.
Boyle, a nurse practitioner, said the board has been "considerate" to keep mental health a priority for the past several years — investing both north and south. The Chisholm clinic is expected to bring mental health services into clinic space the county will lease from developers.
That’s one difference between the two developments — only the Chisholm project is expected to require a long-term lease commitment from the county. That's what Duluth commissioners wanted to know more about when they drew criticism from Range colleagues last month for inquiring.
Jugovich insists the county will make up ongoing costs by subletting space to still unconfirmed providers in the Chisholm clinic. Essentia Health will only require a portion of the clinic.
With the Clarity Project, Boyle explained St. Louis County is the fiscal agent, because it’s the one making the bonding requests. However, it’s not the plan to have the county own the building.
Patrick Boyle
“We want to make sure we don’t have to subsidize it per year,” Boyle said.
Boyle was glad both projects were moving toward a finish line. The Chisholm project will require one more County Board approval once the development process is complete.
“I asked some hard questions because it was a different project,” Boyle said. “But I understand where Mike is coming from, making sure he has health-care and child-care access in his community and, of course, the possibility of the county augmenting and helping with that. It’s important.”
The News Tribune asked Jugovich if he had a responsibility as board chair to sow better harmony on the board after a contentious start to 2021.
“We’re going to have to figure something out; it’s clear we’re not working well together right now,” Jugovich said. "(But) harmony is a two-way street.”
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What's fair is fair? Unpacking the latest St. Louis County Board squabble - Duluth News Tribune
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