Mental Health Center to open Dec. 9

Don Robinson (pictured) spent more than 20 years in the FBI, so people sometimes ask how he became the manager of the upcoming Northern Idaho Crisis Center. But his work in the FBI and now for the crisis center are not so different in one significant way. While investigating crime for the FBI he also specialized in crisis hostage negotiation. And only 2 percent of the calls he and others in that field go out on actually involve a real hostage situation. “The other 98 percent were crisis intervention,” said Robinson, who was an FBI supervisory agent in Coeur d’Alene from 2005 to 2012 before retiring from the FBI in August. He also worked in Moscow, Russia, before retiring. Robinson spoke Thursday to the Kootenai County Reagan Republicans at Fedora Pub and Grille/ David Cole , Coeur d’Alene Press. More here.

• Archives: IFF’s Wayne Hoffman called crisis centers “pork” spending
• Archives: Coeur d’Alene lands mental health center despite Sims, Mendive, Barbieri votes

Question: This worthy, too-long-delayed project survived the best efforts by at least four Kootenai County legislators, including state Rep. Kathy Sims, R-Coeur d’Alene, to become a reality. Thoughts?