What’s next for Willard?
The Seneca County Board of Supervisors recently approved a motion urging state officials to ‘act now’ as the facility recently vacated by the Department of Corrections sits empty.
The Willard Drug Treatment Campus was among those shuttered earlier this year. The closure was first announced in late-2021 by Governor Kathy Hochul.
Local officials cite loss of jobs and economic activity as result of the closure as reason for reinvestment in the property.
The motion was unanimously approved by board members in attendance for Tuesday’s meeting.
The 650-acre property is an historic one sitting along the shore of Seneca Lake. It was established as Willard Psychiatric Center in 1869. Just 13-acres were taken over by the Department of Corrections in 1995 when the facility closed.
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