The option will be purchased using realignment funds made available by the State of California to support county mental health programs. If the option is exercised, the purchase of the property will be funded by a grant from the Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program (BHCIP), available through the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS). The Board of Supervisors authorized the County to apply for BHCIP funds on July 12, 2022. It is anticipated that the required match funding of 10% of the project total cost will be achieved through the contribution of adjacent County-owned property to the project.
APPLICATION FOR STATE FUNDING:
On July 12, 2022, the Board of Supervisors authorized the Health Services Director to apply for grant funding from BHCIP. Approval of the application was granted in recognition of the County’s need to increase the number of its urgent care and longer-term residential treatment facilities, both secure and voluntary, for adults with serious mental illness. In its application for BHCIP funding, the County intends to prioritize serving clients who require longer-term care in the County, regionalizing services, expanding step-down and other treatment options, and making additional facilities available for individuals who have co-occurring substance use disorder (SUD).
On September 30, 2022, DHCS announced the release of BHCIP Round 5: Crisis and Behavioral Health Continuum. Round 5 will make $480 million available to projects that address significant crisis care gaps in behavioral health infrastructure (i.e., mental health and SUD infrastructure). It is expected that the State will give priority to projects that provide crisis services to individuals in need. The application deadline for Round 5 is January 17, 2023.
The project contemplated by this board order will be part of the County’s application for BHCIP funding during Round 5. The option will give the County the right to buy the subject property under the terms of the option agreement and will only be exercised if the County’s application for BHCIP funding is approved. The right to purchase the property gives the County “site control.” If the County doesn’t have “site control” (i.e., ownership of, or the right to purchase, a particular property), over the location of the proposed project, DHCS will not award funds to the project.
PLANNED PROJECT: URGENT CARE FACILITY; RESIDENTIAL TREATMENT FACILITY; WELLNESS CENTER
The subject property is a 1.1-acre parcel located at 2523 El Portal Drive. The property has been improved with a two-story building consisting of approximately 15,500 square feet of space. As shown on the attached site plan, the to-be-acquired property (Lot A) is adjacent to an unimproved 0.42-acre parcel that the County already owns (Lot B). The project being proposed to the State as part of the County’s application for BHCIP funding is the acquisition of Lot A, the renovation of the existing building on Lot A, the construction of an approximately 4,883 square-foot building on Lot B, and the operation of three programs on Lot A and Lot B.
The existing building on Lot A will house a mental health urgent care facility and a therapeutic residential facility. The mental health urgent care facility will provide extended outpatient service hours, including medication support, for individuals experiencing an urgent need who can participate on a voluntary basis. The therapeutic residential facility will have a capacity of 16 beds, will be staffed 24/7, and will be licensed by the State. The residential facility will provide voluntary mental health services in a home-like setting for individuals who have experienced a crisis and require additional support before returning home. The average length of stay at the residential facility is expected to be 5-14 days, with a maximum allowable stay of 30 days.
The building planned to be constructed on Lot B will be used as a community wellness center, the third program that is part of the overall project. The community wellness center will provide a space for community gathering, individual and group recovery support, social and recreational opportunities, life skill classes and other skill development experiences. The wellness center will also include a dog park and other amenities that may be enjoyed by residents of the micro housing units currently under construction on another parcel adjacent to Lot B, the parcel located at 2555 El Portal Drive (Lot C). Lot C is not currently owned by the County but is under County control by virtue of a lease-purchase agreement between the County and the current owner of Lot C. Lot C is currently being renovated for use by the County’s Health Services Department – Health, Housing and Homeless Services Division to provide 54 micro housing units to persons experiencing homelessness, or at risk of homelessness. The renovation and operation of Lot C is a separate project from the one being proposed as part of the County’s application for BHCIP funding.
PURCHASE OF PROPERTY
As the first step in acquiring the property at 2523 El Portal Drive, the County will acquire a six-month option to purchase the property. The purchase price of the option is $100,000. The option price is non-refundable but will be applied to the purchase price of the property if the option is exercised. Once the option to purchase is in effect, the project will have four phases, which are (i) obtaining BHCIP funding from the State, (ii) acquiring the land (Lot A) (through the exercise of the purchase option), (iii) renovating the existing building to provide urgent care and therapeutic residential care, and (iv) constructing the wellness center on the adjacent (County-owned) property (Lot B).
Under the terms of the option, the purchase price of the property is $3,445,000. If the option to purchase is exercised, the $100,000 purchase price of the option will be credited against the purchase price of the property.
If BHCIP funding is awarded to the County, a recommendation to accept the award and exercise the option to purchase the property will be the subject of a subsequent board order.
Failure to secure the right to purchase the real property at 2523 El Portal Drive will result in the County not being awarded BHCIP funding to develop the proposed project.