While there were some concerns surrounding the Bucks County Behavioral Health Crisis Center coming to the Doylestown Health campus, land development plans for the new facility were recently approved by Doylestown Township supervisors.
Questions about traffic from the 22,000-square-foot center, which will be located next to the Lenape Valley Foundation on Doylestown Hospital’s West State Street campus, were raised. With a popular hike-and-bike trail running past the complex, supervisors wanted to ensure the public’s safety.
A representative of the project’s developer said plans are being made for a grass strip to separate Hospital Road and the pathway and a barrier might be added, as well. Other than when nearby Central Bucks West High School and Lenape Middle School are dismissed, the connecting road is not too heavily traveled, said Kellie McGowan, an attorney representing the project.
Other safety concerns included what happens when clients are discharged or refuse to accept transportation to wherever they may be going.
Supervisor chairwoman Jennifer Herring said she expects the township police department to address any issues that may arise.
“Our police department has experience working with many county institutions such as the prison and youth center, as well as the hospital where many are already treated for mental health crisis,” she said, in an email.
“I expect our police, the county and the hospital will continue to perform with the same level of care and excellence in keeping our community safe.”
Plans still need certain permits and approvals from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, Herring noted.
The crisis center is the first of its kind in Pennsylvania, providing care for multiple behavioral health issues in a single location.
“Under one roof, the center will provide all the components of crisis service that are now fractured across our system,” said Sharon Curran, Lenape Valley Foundation’s CEO, when plans for the facility were announced last year.
Services at the center will include support for those with mental health concerns, those with substance and alcohol abuse disorders, intellectual disabilities, first responders and law enforcement officers’ needs, physical health challenges, homeless outreach and other services, Curran said.
“The facility brings innovative solutions to problems that affect all of us. Having a space designed and dedicated to handle mental health crisis is critical to properly address the needs of our community,” Herring said.
Bucks County officials and healthcare providers applauded the project last year. “It took a lot of courage from leaders to move forward with this,” said Bucks commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia, at the time. The nation’s mental health services “have been in ruins since the 1980s…but help is on the way,” she said.
The center will be for Bucks County residents only, with no cost to the client, Curran said.
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