PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The Behavioral Health Center in downtown Portland, which is funded by Multnomah County taxpayers, is closed for two weeks to add shelter beds and train staff, according to the county.
The center, which closed March 30 and is slated to reopen on April 17, is run by two contractors, Multnomah County said.
In a statement to KOIN 6 News, Multnomah County officials said, in part, that infrastructure needed to be addressed along with staff training — including providing trauma-informed services, administering Narcan and when to call law enforcement.
“There are incidents at the day center every day, including overdoses, overdose correction and behavioral health incidents as we try to serve people in our community with the greatest needs,” the county added. “We did receive information that the contracted staff on site needed more training at the same time that it became clear the building needed physical improvements.”
The county says the center is not a walk-in health clinic or treatment facility explaining it’s a “small program that seeks to use peer engagement to help house people with chronic and persistent mental illness, operating within the context of a methamphetamine and fentanyl epidemic that is devastating our community.”
Since the Behavioral Health Resources Center opened in December, it has received almost $38 million in county investments.
The center provides people a place to take showers, do laundry and refers people to overnight shelters and mental health and substance abuse services. KOIN 6 News was told people can also visit the center for housing and employment assistance.
Thursday’s closure comes as Portland police responded to 11 overdoses, three of which were fatal, within blocks of the center on Friday.