Turlock, Calif. — Turlock city officials are requesting Stanislaus County to postpone a decision set for Tuesday regarding a contract extension for a controversial mental health services residential facility on Colorado Avenue.
Turlock City Manager Reagan Wilson criticized the county for failing to communicate with the city about the contract with A&A Health Services, also known as Alamo Health, before it went before the board for approval.
In February, approximately 200 city residents attended a Turlock council meeting to oppose the adult residential care facility planned for the former Las Palmas Estates at 1617 Colorado. Residents expressed concerns that clients with serious mental illnesses might pose a threat to students at nearby Dutcher Middle School. The center is also close to another school and pediatric medical offices.
Clients at the facility would receive behavioral counseling and assistance with medication but would have the freedom to come and go.
Wilson, in a letter to the Board of Supervisors last week, stated that the city learned from the contractor, not the county, about the scheduled amendments to the agreement with A&A Health for Tuesday’s board meeting.
The contract extension is included in a package of “agreements and amendments” with behavioral health service providers, buried within a 132-page county staff report.
“After all that has transpired on this matter, we find it profoundly disappointing that I had to request the status of amendments to your agreement with (A&A) instead of the county reaching out to us to hear the concerns of our community,” Wilson wrote. “It is clear the county has no interest in the effects of this facility in Turlock, including its proximity to a middle school, residences, and medical facilities.”
On Thursday, Turlock issued a press release about the upcoming board item, criticizing the proposed county decision for being made without consulting city residents. “We aim to ensure that all voices are heard in decisions affecting our residents,” Mayor Amy Bublak said. “Our community seeks and deserves transparency and communication from the county.”
The county CEO’s office has not formally responded to Turlock’s request to delay the decision. The county asserts that its Behavioral Health and Recovery Services agency has placed clients at the Colorado Avenue center for several decades. According to a county spokesperson, the contract renewal depends on A&A Health obtaining licenses and city permits to re-open the former Las Palmas Estates facility, which was closed last year for renovations.
The center would reopen with 84 beds. Previously, 75% of clients had to be 60 years or older, with the remaining 25% aged 18 to 59. The new plan changes this to 60 and older representing 25% of occupancy, allowing 75% to be adults aged 18 to 59.
County Supervisor Vito Chiesa, whose district includes Turlock, emphasized the importance of the contract, stating that without it, clients from Stanislaus County would have to be sent to other counties. “In 16 years, I have not heard any complaints — that doesn’t mean there haven’t been any,” Chiesa said. “(A&A) has good outcomes with their clients at their facility in San Pablo.”
Chiesa pledged to listen to the city’s concerns at Tuesday’s meeting.
Wilson noted that most residents believe the facility’s location is inappropriate. “Had the county and (A&A) approached the city with their plans in a timely fashion, we would have cooperated to identify a more appropriate location for such a facility that was not so near to school children and children receiving medical treatment,” he wrote.
The county staff report indicates the contract with A&A was for $6.14 million from July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2024. The amendment proposes $7.76 million for services between July 1 and June 30, 2025.
The Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors will meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday, in the basement chamber of Tenth Street Place, at 1010 10th St, Modesto.
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