The Santa Barbara County Department of Behavioral Wellness is looking to buy an administrative office building in Santa Barbara to expand its programs as it begins to outgrow its current space.

The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors approved the execution of an exclusive negotiations agreement during its meeting Tuesday, which provides the county with a six-month period to exclusively negotiate with the property owner for acquisition of the property.

The property — owned by the nonprofit organization PathPoint — is located at 315 W. Haley St. in Santa Barbara and includes an 8,560-square-foot building that Behavioral Wellness would use for administrative office space and behavioral health and community care services.

Behavioral Wellness currently leases a 4,225-square-foot office space on De la Vina Street, where it provides mental health and substance abuse services. 

According to the board letter for the Board of Supervisors item, Behavioral Wellness pays a monthly rent — which also includes expenses for common area operation and a share of property maintenance and repairs — of more than $15,000, which is subject to an annual fixed 3% increase.

“There is a strong community demand for BeWell’s services and the BeWell programs are quickly growing beyond current facility capacity,” the board letter stated. “BeWell staff desire to expand services and treatment opportunities, including prevention and early intervention, in order to meet current and future community needs, yet there is no room to accommodate any expansion at the De la Vina Clinic or other BeWell facilities.”

The board letter also stated that Behavioral Wellness staff want to be able to provide services in a more central location within easy access to public transportation.

Suzanne Grimmesey, chief quality care and strategy officer for Behavioral Wellness, said the department plans to offer more services for homeless individuals and create a housing retention team, which would provide up to 90 days of intensive case management.

“If a person does not have housing, you can get all the services you want but you’re still going to be without housing,” Grimmesey said, adding that housing can also be affected by an individual’s access to services.

Behavioral Wellness also plans to expand its alcohol and other drugs services, as well as bring different teams and services together to collaborate.

“It’s about getting the right kinds of services, the right kinds of collaboration, in the right place so services can be more easily accessed by the clients who need them,” Grimmesey said.

The cost of acquisition and renovations would be funded through the Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program — which Behavioral Wellness has proposed applying for — and with American Rescue Plan Act funding.

Funding from the Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program, developed by the California Department of Health Services, is used to address infrastructure needs for mental health and substance use services.

“At 8,560 square feet, the property is just over twice the size of the De la Vina Clinic and, therefore, presents an opportunity for BeWell to not only meet current demand, but to expand its services and treatment opportunities including those for homeless individuals and a Medically Assisted Treatment program for substance use issues,” the board letter stated. “The property is located in BeWell’s preferred downtown location and would also allow the county to transition from a costly leased location to a permanent county-owned facility.”

If the county negotiates a purchase agreement with the property owner, then staff will return to the Board of Supervisors for approval of the purchase agreement.

— Noozhawk staff writer Serena Guentz can be reached at sguentz@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.