STARLight Center hosted ceremonial opening on Thursday
LANCASTER − Fairfield County Alcohol, Drug and Mental Health Board Executive Director Marcy Fields on Thursday said it made sense to open the STARLight Center on Feb. 29, or Leap Day.
“It’s a very special and unique building here, a one-of-a-kind,” she said. “It’s appropriate to have it on Leap Day, a very one-of-a-kind day every four years. We really do appreciate having such a strong community. The community believed in us.”
The STARLIght Center is located at 336 E. Locust St. and is a mental health treatment and substance abuse recovery center.
It will be staffed by medical personnel 24 hours a day and seven days a week. It has the capacity to treat eight adults dealing with mental health issues and 12 who need immediate help in fighting substance abuse. The center will start accepting patients in late spring with OhioGuidestone providing the treatment.
Patients with mental health issues will stay for five to seven days and those with substance abuse issues will stay up to 30 days. Treatment is voluntary.
The building cost around $4 million to build after voters passed a 2019 levy.
The ADAMH board broke ground in May 2022. About 200 or so people attended the ribbon cutting, including various local officials and OhioGuidestone staff.
OhioGuidestone Vice President of Regional Operations Amanda Wattenberg said “so much hard work and planning went in to making this dream happen here.”
“Our evidence-based person-centered care will be the heart and soul of the STARLight Center,” she said. “The STARLight Center will be a place of healing and new beginning for Fairfield County.”
Mayor Don McDaniel said the center is much needed, which Fairfield County Prosecutor Kyle Witt agreed with.
“Our community, just like many others in the state of Ohio, has a population that’s struggling with addiction and mental health issues,” Witt said. “I think a center like this could certainly be a big boon and will be a big boon for our community to help address those problems.”
Former neighborhood resident Hollie Saunders and others previously expressed concern about the center coming to the neighborhood. But Saunders recently said it’s too early to know the effect it will have.
“Thank goodness, for right now, it’s not lit as brightly as we thought,” Saunders said.
The lighting at night was one of the concerns of nearby residents.
Fields said ADAMH has worked with the residents to address their concerns.
jbarron@gannett.com
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Twitter/X: @JeffDBarron
