Supervisor Mar seeks bridge funding for Edgewood youth facility as corrective actions continue

Supervisor Gordon Mar introduced a resolution at the Feb. 11 meeting recommending a one-time, limited-term grant from the Department of Public Health to the Edgewood Center for Children and Families. Mar said the funding is intended as bridge support while Edgewood completes corrective actions and restores city referrals.

Mar told the board that Edgewood — which provides a range of youth behavioral-health services including the city’s only youth crisis stabilization unit — submitted a 400-page corrective action plan and has received its California license for its short-term residential treatment program in December. But referrals and city placements remained paused while the Department of Public Health and Human Services completed reviews, creating cash-flow problems for the nonprofit.

“Edgewood needs to remain financially solvent to be able to complete the corrective action plan process,” Mar said. He described the proposed bridge funding as a way to preserve the city’s only local youth crisis stabilization unit while the agency and the provider complete the corrective work required to rebuild trust.

Mar said he supported the decision to pause placements while misconduct allegations were investigated, but said the city should work to return services once corrective steps are verified. He thanked DPH Director Dr. Grant Colfax and Edgewood leadership for engaging on the corrective plan.

The item was introduced; no final vote on funding occurred on Feb. 11.