The State Controlling Board has approved $1.7 million in capital funds for new construction for Dani’s Place, a crisis step-down facility in South Toledo, State Rep. Erika White announced, directing state money toward transitional mental health housing in Lucas County.
The project will support new construction on the grounds adjacent to the Northwest Ohio Behavioral Healthcare psychiatric hospital in Toledo. White, a Democrat from Springfield Township, announced the approval in a statement released through the Ohio House of Representatives.
“Access to mental health services is essential for fostering a thriving and resilient community,” White said in the announcement. She said the resources will be invested in a facility that offers critical support, including counseling, crisis intervention and community outreach initiatives for Lucas County and Northwest Ohio residents.
Dani’s Place provides transitional residential mental health services, creating a step between hospital care and independent living for people recovering from mental illness. Supporters say that step is often where recovery breaks down, when a patient leaves a hospital without the housing or daily support needed to stay stable.
When patients are released from the hospital, they often do not have the proper support in place to care for themselves, such as affordable housing, that allows them to fully recover, according to the announcement. Dani’s Place is designed to aid in that recovery and help residents move toward thriving in the community.
The $1.7 million comes through the state’s capital funding process, with the Controlling Board approving the release of the money for construction. Capital allocations of this kind fund the building itself, while the services inside are supported through the behavioral health system that serves Northwest Ohio.
For Toledo-area families, the facility adds a local option at one of the most difficult points in mental health care: the days and weeks right after a hospital stay. The announcement did not include a construction timeline, and the project now moves toward building on the hospital grounds in South Toledo.
Photo: Limpfster94, CC BY-SA 4.0