Portland Behavioral Health Resource Center closing for fire safety upgrades, training
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The Behavioral Health Resource Center in downtown Portland is shutting down for one week in May for fire safety improvements and staff training, Multnomah County announced Tuesday.
The center will close May 6-12 for staff certification training and scheduled upgrades — including replacing elevator curtains, which prevent smoke and heat from entering the elevator shaft in the four-story building in the event of a fire, officials said.
Ahead of the closure, the county said the center is working to connect guests to other shelters and services, which will not be available to the more than 100 people they serve daily.
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According to Multnomah County, the week-long closure and “accelerated construction” will help them avoid an estimated five-week service disruption if the day center, shelter, and bridge housing services were to remain open during the maintenance work.
The timing of the closure will allow Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon staff –who operate the day center — to earn continuing education credits, which are required to obtain and maintain professional certification. Do Good Multnomah staff — who operate the shelter and bridge housing – will use the time to train peer staff, the county said.
“We’ve built an amazing team of peer professionals who are consistently ready and available to support our community,” said John Karp-Evans, Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon’s senior program and operations director at the Behavioral Health Resource Center. “This time will allow the needed focus on continuing education to maintain certification and expand skill sets in alignment with professional credentialing. Our team will continue to prepare and inform participants regarding other community services where they can get their needs met during this closure.”
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Jason Anderson, a Do Good program manager for the shelter and bridge program said, “Do Good is excited to build further towards the long-term safety of the BHRC for our participants. Over the last few months, we have been working diligently to minimize the impact of the temporary closure on the individuals currently staying at the BHRC. We have timed intakes to allow everyone to receive the standard 30 days of shelter before exiting on May 5th.”
Multnomah County Interim Behavioral Health Director Heather Mirasol said the closure is a “well-orchestrated opportunity” to enhance critical services, adding, “The planning that MHAAO and Do Good Multnomah have done to ensure that the individuals they serve are effectively cared for during and following this closure is consistent with the outstanding quality of the work they do at the at the Center daily.’’
The Behavioral Health Resource Center opened in December of 2022 and has helped 3,750 people who are houseless and experiencing addiction or mental health challenges downtown – providing a space for laundry, showers, phone charging, and internet access.
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