PfP has purchased the property at 5235 Page Avenue and is planning an extensive renovation to convert it to 23 units of supported housing, plus communal space and offices for on-site staff.

Tentatively titled “Places at Page,” this facility will help fill an important role in the housing gap for people living with severe and persistent mental illness.

“This will be the perfect combination of all the good things about independent living and of all the benefits of having on-site support—if and when you need it,” explains PfP Executive Director Francie Broderick.

Each apartment will include its own living space, kitchen, and bathroom. Prospective residents will be people who can and want to live independently, but who may need the attention and support provided by a secure facility with on-site, around-the-clock staff.

Places at Page will provide an excellent alternative for people who have previously either been homeless or unnecessarily housed in nursing homes.

“This is another piece of the housing array. It’s the most missing piece of the array of services in the state and certainly in this area,” says Broderick.

On-site staff will be instrumental at Places at Page in helping to stabilize housing for people who may have a history of chronic homelessness. Staff will be available to assist and intervene as needed and to provide support services directly where the clients live, which has consistently proven to yield the most positive results.

With development assistance from ND Consulting Group, the plans for this project have been designed by Jeffrey A. Brambila, AIA, Architects & Planners of St. Louis. Financing plans include a combination of tax credits, public funding, and private donations.

Project Overview

• The 2 1/2 floors plus the lower level will be extensively renovated for use by residents and staff.
• Staff will be on-site around the clock and will provide community support and monitor the entrance.
• There will be 23 residential units, consisting of 9 efficiency, 10 one-bedroom, and 4 two-bedroom apartments.
• Three overnight rooms will be available for short-term use to address special situations.
• Each unit will have ample closet space as well as a full kitchen with standard electric appliances.
• The building will have central air conditioning.
• There will be several community areas, including a community kitchen, a living room and social areas, a laundry room, and meeting and conference rooms.
• The outdoor courtyard will be accessible to residents.
• All major systems will be replaced.
• Minor exterior repairs will be made to preserve the structure’s historic integrity.

Labels: Addiction, Affordable Housing, Agency Philosophy, Funding, Housing First

Places at Page: PfP's New Housing Project  

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Housing First: A Realistic Approach to Treating Addiction

Dr. Michael Mancini

More than half of people with serious psychiatric illness have a co-occurring substance abuse issue, with estimates ranging even higher for people who are also homeless. Many of PfP's new clients are struggling with dependency and homelessness when they are admitted to the program.

For a majority of these individuals, substance abuse began in the early stages of their illness. Street drugs often offered immediate relief for the most troubling symptoms of mental illness -- creating a destructive cycle of use and dependency.

While Places for People has always placed housing as its first priority, adopting the Housing First model has been especially challenging for some healthcare providers. It has been a challenge that often required a radical shift in thinking and service delivery. For some mental health providers, the principles of Housing First have conflicted with their admissions policies. For decades, most providers denied housing assistance and healthcare to individuals with an active history of drug abuse. In order to access health and medical care, people seeking services would have to abstain from using drugs for a period of three to five months.

For people who were extremely ill, many times psychotic, and homeless, these conditions virtually locked them out of the healthcare system. It was not uncommon that people would deliberately attempt to be arrested, with the hopes that shelter and medical care would be available in prison.

Dr. Michael Mancini, Assistant Professor at Saint Louis University's School of Social Work, has been working in the field of mental health and addiction for the past decade. For the past three years, he has been working with PfP staff and clients at CJ's Place to determine the effectiveness of programs that house people first and then address mental illness and drug simultaneously.

Mancini contends that requiring complete abstinence before accessing housing and healthcare is an unrealistic expectation and sets an almost impossible standard for people seeking treatment.

"If people could achieve abstinence on their own, why would they need services in the first place? We wouldn't expect the same of people suffering from depression. We would not ask them to not be suicidal before receiving mental health services."

While substance abuse is a troubling and often volatile social and political issue, most healthcare providers realize that is is a human issue that requires a comprehensive and integrated approach. PfP has received a grant from the Missouri Foundation for Health to begin addressing the needs of integrating mental health and addiction treatment.

Labels: Addiction, Housing First, Summer 2007

Housing First: A Realistic Approach to Treating Addiction  

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