Missoula’s first crisis receiving center to open its doors this month

“It’s a huge deal that we’re here right now,” Missoula County Commissioner Josh Slotnick said to a packed room of local officials and health care workers on Monday afternoon.

Slotnick was standing in the Riverwalk Crisis Center, Missoula’s first facility of its kind dedicated to stabilizing people experiencing immediate behavioral health crises. With a soft opening scheduled for Nov. 27, Riverwalk is a 24-hour care center that can hold up to 16 patients at any given time.

Lois Macias, right, director of operations for Western Montana Mental health, hugs Terry Kendrick, former project facilitator for the Strategic Alliance, at the grand opening of the Riverwalk Crisis Center.

ANTONIO IBARRA OLIVARES, Missoulian

Riverwalk offers wrap-around services for anyone 18 or older. Therapists, peer support specialists, registered nurses and crisis stabilization workers will be on-site to offer comprehensive mental health support.

“Being in crisis is not a crime,” Slotnick said. “Bringing that person to jail is a horrible misuse of expensive resources at our really well-run jail.”

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