Ohio wants to build a new psychiatric hospital in suburban Dayton, where the Hara Arena once stood.
The state bought the site in November. It’s about 133 acres on Shiloh Springs Road — 91 acres are in Trotwood, 42 acres in Harrison Township.
However the city of Trotwood leaders and some residents want something different there.
Ohio’s state-run psychiatric hospitals are almost always full and those beds are overwhelmingly used by people coming from the criminal justice system. In 2008, the state closed its psychiatric hospital in Dayton, Twin Valley, which exacerbated the bed shortage.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said the old Hara Arena site has long needed development and believes this project will best serve a community need.
“I’ve heard from people in the Miami Valley for years since the old hospital was closed that we need a mental health facility where people can go in the Miami Valley,” DeWine said. “We have it in other parts of the state but you shouldn’t have to go to Cincinnati, you shouldn’t have to go to Toledo.
“You don’t rearrange their furniture”
While Trotwood Mayor Yvette Page agreed with DeWine that mental health services are needed in the Miami Valley, she said the city doesn’t want it at the former Hara Arena site.
“And until they turn that dirt, I’m going to stick to what God has planned for that area.”
Trotwood Mayor Yvette Page
“We’re not saying no to the government. In fact, we would be crazy not to accept it,” she said. “But it’s just like anything. If you come into someone’s home or house, you don’t rearrange their furniture. You don’t tell them what to put, where it goes. You ask them. You include them. You say ‘we’re coming, what can we do to work collaboratively together?’ That’s all we’re asking.”
Page said city leaders have identified four other sites they believe are better suited.
Trotwood resident Cynthia Bass agreed with the mayor citing safety concerns for seniors and children. Nearby the former Hara Arena site, there’s a senior center and condos.
“No, that’s just not safe. I don’t think that’s wise,” Bass said.
Resident Jack Jason prefers a development that will generate new jobs.
“In general, I’m in favor of something being put there,” he said. “Not necessarily a mental health facility but something should go there. Something more attached to retail perhaps?”
Jobs and more: ‘New rooftops means new amenities’
According to the state’s proposal, the new treatment center will create about 500 new jobs and generate an annual payroll of $126 million.
That’s economic growth both communities need, said Nathan Edwards, communications and economic development manager.
“We’ve already had housing developers reach out to us wanting to build new single-family homes near the site in anticipation of these new jobs. New rooftops means new amenities,” he said.
“This is part of our overall goals and plans to build a mental health system in the state of Ohio that serves every part of the state and serves every community.”
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine
The new treatment center will stabilize patients who are referred to the facility by a doctor, a hospital or the court system.
“These are folks who are in acute psychiatric crisis,” Edwards said. “These are mothers with severe postpartum depression. These elderly patients with complex mental health needs. Patients with different disorders that are having an impact on their day-to-day life.”
According to Edwards, patients will be transported to the facility to get treatment and transported once they are released, reducing the chance of clients wandering the neighborhood. DeWine said the proposed treatment center is part of a larger effort.
“This is part of our overall goals and plans to build a mental health system in the state of Ohio that serves every part of the state and serves every community,” DeWine said.
The proposed center would be 270,000 square feet and completed by 2030.
Meanwhile, Trotwood Mayor Page said her constituents have a different vision for the old Hara Arena site, like a mix of homes and businesses.
“And until they turn that dirt, I’m going to stick to what God has planned for that area,” Page said.