Tuolumne County will receive $9.5 million in state funding to turn part of the former Tuolumne General Hospital campus into a peer respite housing facility, which local officials describe as a “missing link” in the county’s behavioral health system.
The project is one of 66 throughout California that Gov. Gavin Newsom recently announced would receive a portion of $1.18 billion through the state’s Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program, funded by Proposition 1, a 2024 voter-approved bond measure aimed at improving access to treatment and reducing homelessness statewide.
Tuolumne County’s project, dubbed “The Foundry — Where Strength is Forged,” would create 11 peer respite beds on the campus of the former county-run hospital, which was shuttered in the late 2000s due to financial challenges and declining patient numbers after the opening of what is now Adventist Health Sonora.
“Peer respite” is a term used by people in the behavioral health field for a voluntary program that gives people experiencing mental health or substance use challenges a temporary place to stay while navigating further treatment options.
“This opportunity marks a tremendous milestone for our community,” Tami Mariscal, director of the county Behavioral Health Department, said Friday in a statement to The Union Democrat. “The development of a peer respite in our rural community is truly a missing link in our continuum of care, providing a safe, supportive space for early and interim interventions that empowers individuals on their path to recovery.”
Peer respite and other short-term housing are among the local system’s most significant unmet needs, with no dedicated local beds currently available, according to the county’s 2026-29 Integrated Plan, a planning document for behavioral health services and outcomes that the state requires counties to complete every three years.
The facility’s proposed location on the former Tuolumne General Hospital campus is alongside the county’s behavioral health clinic and peer-run drop-in center, which officials say would provide residents with access to on-site services that include crisis stabilization, peer support, case management and housing navigation.
There would also be peer support workers and case managers staffed by the Behavioral Health Department staff at the site around the clock, according to a description of the project in the county’s 2026-29 Integrated Plan, which lists a targeted opening date by July 1, 2030.
Officials say the program would serve a range of residents, including unhoused people, veterans, older adults, those leaving incarceration, and individuals transitioning from higher levels of care.
A summary of the project provided by Mariscal on Friday stated that people in the county who are leaving higher levels of care, or those preparing to enter a more structured treatment environment, face a significant gap in interim services that can put them at a greater risk of relapse, crisis, or re-hospitalization.
The summary stated that the peer respite facility would offer a short-term, voluntary, and non-clinical environment that is both safe and supportive.
“Drug and mental illness treatment without safe refuge means fewer successful recoveries, and particularly rural areas struggle with bedspace,” District 5 County Supervisor Jaron Brandon stated in March 16 news from the Governor’s Office announcing the awards. “This $9.5 million for peer respite housing supports those trying to get better in the safe place they need and, in this case, breathes life back into a formerly closed public facility.”
Contact Alex MacLean at amaclean@uniondemocrat.com or (209) 588-4541.