On January 3rd, in her remarks at the swearing-in ceremony for elected officials, Supervisor Sue Hoek emphasized the need for healing in the aftermath of the turbulent and traumatic times we’ve suffered collectively, and she proclaimed 2023 the “Year of the Heart.” This is a moving and inspirational message, especially at Behavioral Health, where healing, compassion, and heart are what we do.
The Nevada County Behavioral Health Department utilizes a variety of resources in our supportive housing program. Many of our clients are able to live higher quality lives in community settings if we provide needed support and services. The spectrum of housing options we provide ranges from facilities for individuals who need a lot of support with activities of daily living, and so we provide onsite staff 24/7, to facilities where people are stable and able to function relatively independently, and we provide check-ins a few times a week.
The Ranch House is somewhere in the middle of this spectrum. When we pick someone for our more independent supportive housing facilities, such as Ranch House, we already have worked with that individual for years, and we know that they have no history of being violent and are not registered sexual offenders. We also know that they have been stable for an extended period and are capable of living with less support. Individuals we place there are stable but may need daily check-ins. Staff from Behavioral Health or one of our contracted providers are on-site twice every day to deliver medications and to check on residents. The current residents have lived in this home for between 5-10 years and have largely been very stable during this time.
While this program has been highly successful, we need more units, and specifically units that are independent for those who don’t thrive with roommates. On January 24th, the Board of Supervisors will hear a proposal to utilize grant funds to remodel the Ranch House into six independent units. This project will add needed capacity to our array of supportive housing options and will help keep vulnerable people from descending into homelessness.
Behavioral Health serves approximately 1,000 people each month. Almost all these people live independently, safely, and happily in our community. Serious mental illness is a disease that can be treated, and people can continue to live rich and fulfilling lives with the right supports and opportunities. As a society, we have a great deal of stigma and fear about mental illness. But if we overcome this, we can see people with mental illness as valued members of a community in which our diversity and differences are part of what makes us vibrant and healthy.
For any of you who watched the November 10th Planning Commission meeting about this project, you may have walked away with very negative perceptions of people with serious mental illness. I wish you instead could see the many, many kind, caring and lovely people we have the privilege of serving in our department. But in accordance with our commitment to compassion in this Year of the Heart, I can also recognize the fear underlying the concerns of the neighbors who spoke against this project at the meeting.
We are committed to being good neighbors with all of our housing projects, and as such, we have met with local businesses and neighbors, including joining a neighborhood meeting with Supervisor Heidi Hall to answer questions and receive feedback. We have taken the concerns of the Planning Commission, the neighbors, and local businesses to heart and made substantive changes, including fencing to protect the wetland, changes to the exterior design to be more consistent with the neighborhood, and providing a point of contact and establishing open lines of communication with the neighborhood so we can address any issues and concerns early.
As Mahatma Gandhi once said, “the true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members.” In this Year of the Heart, I hope that we can come together as a community, stay grounded in compassion and caring, and recognize that everyone in our community, including those struggling with what can be a terrible disease, deserve access to a stable home and a fulfilling life.
Phebe Bell is Nevada County’s Behavioral Health Director.
