Earlier this month, Skagit County celebrated the expansion of its STAR (Stabilization, Treatment and Recovery) Center in Sedro-Woolley. The Skagit STAR Center provides law enforcement and first responders a safe place to drop off community members in crisis who need acute mental health treatment and substance use detox.
County commissioners joined state legislators, community stakeholders and the North Star leadership team on Aug. 12 to break ground on the crisis stabilization campus expansion, a $22.8 million project funded by the state. The facility is expected to be a cost-effective alternative to jail or the emergency room.
North Star is a public-private partnership between the local governments of Skagit County, first responders and housing and health care providers, intended to coordinate and collaborate on essential community services.
The first phase of the STAR Center campus, the North Sound Evaluation and Treatment Center, was completed in 2022 and has 16 involuntary beds for crisis stabilization. The new facility next door will have 48 voluntary inpatient beds and is expected to open late in 2025.
According to a 2022 report by North Sound Behavioral Health Administrative Services Organization, in the five-county North Sound region there is a 127-bed shortage for substance abuse and mental health disorder treatments.
“Having a safe and compassionate place for people to go when they are experiencing a mental health crisis or needing withdrawal management services is essential for supporting health and recovery,” county commission chair Peter Browning said in a news release. “The Skagit STAR Center fills gaps in our community’s behavioral health continuum of care and will improve connections to other treatment supports in our region.”
Julia Tellman writes about civic issues and anything else that happens to cross her desk; contact her at juliatellman@cascadiadaily.com.
