(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Community advocates have filed petitions to put a non-binding referendum on the ballot to reopen city-run mental health centers closed by the Emanuel Administration.
The Coalition for Community Wellness has filed petitions for a ballot measure calling on the city to re-activate the six mental health clinics closed in 2012.
And activists like Jhoanna Maldonado want to see more calls of mental health emergencies answered by clinicians, not police officers. The ballot measure deals with that, too.
The Lightfoot administration has three pilot programs underway to test different emergency responses.
Ald. Rossana Rodriguez (33rd) said more emphasis is on the so-called "co-responder" model, in which police accompany mental health professionals.
She acknowledges ballot measures don't often fare well in Chicago, but she and the advocates say they must keep trying.
