Richland County detox center groundbreaking rescheduled
Emily Mills
MANSFIELD - A groundbreaking ceremony for Richland County's only detox center and a new residential facility for people seeking addiction treatment on Catalyst Life Services' campus is back on after a three-month delay.
The groundbreaking ceremony, which is open to the public, will be at 11 a.m. Monday, Aug. 27, at the current New Beginnings campus, 711 Scholl Road.
Joe Trolian, executive director of the Richland County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board, said no bids were received for the project by the May deadline, so the scheduled May groundbreaking had to be postponed.
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The ceremony is back on after Studer-Obringer was selected as the project contractor. MKC Architects is still the project architect.
"We appreciate everybody's patience," Trolian said. "We've been really working hard to make this come to fruition."
Once constructed, the facilities will expand the addiction services available in north central Ohio, as the area hasn't had an in-patient withdrawal management, or detox, facility since Crestline's Freedom Hall closed in 2004 after reductions in funding.
Catalyst Life Services, which already offers some withdrawal management services at its 13-bed crisis stabilization unit at 741 Scholl Road, will be the service provider for the facilities. Third Street Family Health Services will provide medical services.
The new 16-bed Withdrawal Management Services building will offer treatment for withdrawal from both drugs and alcohol. Individuals would ideally be able to get in the same day, as long as there's a bed available.
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While detoxing, a person would receive a variety of services, including medical and counseling services and assistance from peer recovery supporters.
Treatment would include either abstinence-based detox, with patients medically weaned off a substance, or medication-assisted treatment, using medications such as buprenorphine, sold as Suboxone, or naltrexone, sold as Vivitrol.
After anywhere between three and 10 days of detox, patients would be evaluated using the American Society of Addiction Medicine Levels of Care to determine where they go next. It could be a residential treatment facility, an intensive outpatient program or weekly therapy sessions.
Catalyst already has its 16-bed New Beginnings residential treatment facility. As part of the construction, a second 16-bed residential treatment facility, called New Beginnings II, will be built.
The second building will allow Catalyst to divide the facilities by gender, with men in one facility and women in the other. The current New Beginnings facility is coed.
Both 24-hour buildings — the detox facility and the second residential facility — will be built near the existing New Beginnings facility, at Scholl Road and Sterkel Boulevard on the Catalyst campus. Both new buildings will be owned by the county board.
When it comes to payment, Trolian said Catalyst works on a sliding fee scale. The county board completely covers room and board and assessment costs, he said. If someone has insurance, it's billed, but if they don't, the board can help pay for other services, depending on income level. Other options include Medicaid or self-pay.
Trolian said the construction of the buildings could take a year or less.
The funding for the project includes $500,000 from the county board and a $500,000 match from the state.
The board secured additional funding for the withdrawal management facility, including $100,000 from the Richland County Foundation, $50,000 from the S.N. and Ada Ford Foundation and $20,000 from OhioHealth.
The project's total cost is $2.25 million, although up to $2.6 million is available in contingency funds if the project costs increase.
ejmills@mansfieldnewsjournal.com
419-521-7205
Twitter: @EmilyMills818
If you need help
Call 211 or First Call 211's alternate line at 419-522-4636 for help with local addiction resources.
Call the county helpline at 419-522-HELP (419-522-4357) if you're in crisis.