The DuPage County Board unanimously approved $25.8 million in funding this week to build the DuPage County Crisis Recovery Center in Wheaton.
When completed in 2025, the 33,000-square-foot facility will provide a place to treat people who are dealing with emergency situations related to mental health and/or substance addiction, officials said.
“The Crisis Recovery Center will create a new pathway for crisis services and ensure individuals experiencing a mental health and/or substance use crisis receive immediate help, the proper level of support and linkage to the appropriate treatment setting,” DuPage County Health Department Executive Director Karen Ayala said in a statement.
Obtaining approval for the facility at the Tuesday meeting was one of the last actions taken under Ayala’s helm. She retired this week after working for the health department for 16 years, the last 10 of which as its director.
She told board members that her tenure with DuPage County was “the honor of a lifetime.”
As proposed by Ayala and the health department, the County Board approved a funding plan that calls for the crisis center to be paid for with $21.77 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds and $5.5 million from the state’s Rebuild Illinois Capital Plan.
“Investing these funds to expand access to behavioral health crisis services will have a lasting impact on our community, improving the health and well-being of DuPage County residents,” Sam Tornatore, County Board member and DuPage County Board of Health president, said in a statement.
With funding now in place, construction is expected to start next year. Health department estimates said the facility will require $5.5 million to $6 million annually to operate, including staffing, security, supplies and general upkeep.
It will be connected to the Linda A. Kurzawa Community Center at 115 N. County Farm Road, a site chosen for its central county location. The health department will be working with the county sheriff’s office, local police departments and medical facilities to transport patients for treatment, officials said.
“We’re very interested in working collaboratively with partners to tackle the challenge that is transportation in DuPage County generally specific to this project,” Adam Forker, new health department executive director, said after the meeting.
While details of how law enforcement and emergency medical providers will interact with the center are still being discussed, it’s expected that most patients will either come the the facility on their own or will be brought by family, friends or neighbors, Forker said.
Patients will receive screenings, safety risk assessments, guidance from mental health professionals, assistance in alcohol and/or drug withdrawal, and other means of support. Stays are short term to help temporarily allay the crisis and sets a long-term recovery or treatment plan.
In a June 12 presentation, health department officials said the facility should take some of the pressure off jails and hospitals, which do not have the staff or resources to properly manage patients experiencing a behavioral crisis.
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Kenneth Popejoy, chief judge of the 18th Circuit Court, told the board he was a strong proponent of the plan.
“From a civil point of view, there will be far less guardianships that will be needed, there will be far less mental health hearings that will be needed,” Popejoy said. “From a criminal point of view, there will be a great assistance to the mental health court, for orders of protection, for domestic violence issues and the like.
“This will help keep the mental health professionals doing what is necessary with the people that have these needs, not so much the judges and the jaliers that don’t have all of the experience needed to provide the aid for these individuals.”