The center will open at Elizabeth Place in the Carillon neighborhood, likely in the fall.
“We like this property because (it) has easy access for law enforcement and first-responders to drop off people who are in crisis,” Vincent Sabino, RI International’s state director of Ohio. “It is a central location where people can easily get to from all parts of the community. Finally, it is a good location because it is close to many community partners and referral sources that allows us to give a warm hand-off.”
The center at 601 S. Edwin C. Moses Blvd. will have 16 recliner chairs for patients so they can receive treatment from behavioral health professionals.
The 7,500-square-foot center is the final piece of a model that gives community members in crisis someone to call (the Montgomery County Crisis Now Hotline at 833-580-2255); someone to come to them (Mobile Crisis Response Teams) and, soon, somewhere to go (the crisis center).
“This innovative approach to providing behavioral health services will give hope to those who are searching for help and provide a new resource to families looking to connect their loved ones to available services,” said Helen Jones-Kelley, executive director of Montgomery County ADAMHS.
The hotline already has received more than 3,500 calls from people seeking help, and mobile teams, with trained professionals, were dispatched to a small number of calls when the crises could not be handled over the phone.
Soon, people in need immediate services and care will be taken to the crisis center.
“I am so thankful that RI International has expanded CrisisNow services to Montgomery County, and that they will continue to support the critical mental health needs of our citizens through the new Crisis Now Receiving Center,” said Barbara Marsh, COO of OneFifteen, which operates a crisis stabilization unit at Kindred Hospital on the same block.
RI International and ADAMHS originally wanted to put the 24/7 protective care facility at the former AAA building at 825 S. Ludlow St.
But zoning variances were required because the property was located within 1,000 feet of a school (Chaminade Julienne Catholic High School) and another protective care facility (Daybreak’s emergency shelter).
In late March, the Dayton Board of Zoning Appeals denied the request, which came after critical comments from some residents and school supporters.
They said there was no reason the center needed to be at that property, and they claimed it would harm the school and oversaturate the area with social service providers.
Critics, including some residents and school supporters, said there was no good reason why the center needed to be at that property, and they claimed putting it there would harm the school and oversaturate the area with social service providers.
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