CARMEL – The Carmel Planning Board has rejected a petition signed by some 200 residents opposed to the location of a stabilization center adjacent to their over 55 community along Stoneleigh Avenue in Carmel hamlet since the open forum when community input was closed.
Donna D’Alesandro attempted to present the document to the board at its meeting; however, the board failed to accept it. “Imagine ignoring the voice of 200 residents of the Town of Carmel?” she asked.
The petition cites a number of concerns including the “safety and well-being of older residents; incompatibility with community purpose; proximity and buffer concerns; impact on quality of life and lack of community input.”
It asks the board to deny approval of the center near their homes while “relocating the facility to a better site suited for its operational needs and client population with appropriate distance from senior residential areas” and at the same time “ensuring that any future proposals include robust community outreach and consideration of senior specific impacts.”
In November, people were passionate on both sides of the issue when testifying at a Carmel Planning Board public hearing on the plan to locate the stabilization center along Stoneleigh Ave.
Carmel Town Hall in Mahopac was packed with 150 residents for the emotionally charged session.
The United States is facing a behavioral health crisis and Putnam County is not immune.
The crisis stabilization center will allow those in mental hygiene crisis, be it substance abuse or mental health, to voluntarily visit the facility staffed by licensed clinicians, nurses, and peer specialists in a less traumatic experience than a hospital emergency room.
After two sites for the center fell through in 2023, the new location was selected to be operated by People USA at 1071 Stoneleigh Avenue in Carmel, providing whole health assessments in addition to motivational interviewing and de-escalation.
During the two-hour-long hearing, most speakers indicated a center was needed; however, dozens of speakers objected to its proposed location citing that the hamlet of Carmel is already saturated with facilities assisting those in need of mental health and alcohol abuse problems.
The center’s proposed location is adjacent to the Putnam Rail Trail where a woman was attacked by a homeless man last fall, as well as near the over-55 senior housing complex. The Putnam Plaza Shopping Center is also within walking distance.
Numerous residents of The Retreat, including a woman who identified herself as a psychologist, charged that Carmel had become “destabilized. No one is questioning the need for services. We just need another location.”
The board is expected to decide on whether or not to approve the project at its January 28 meeting.
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