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State mental‑health officials and community groups push to reopen Kona clubhouse amid staffing and facility issues
Summary
State mental‑health staff and local partners described staffing shortages and recurring plumbing problems that have kept the Kona Clubhouse closed; officials have identified a more central lease site in Kailua‑Kona and asked for DAGS assistance, while Oahu clubhouses report stronger staffing and accreditation activity.
The State Council on Mental Health heard detailed updates on July 9 about efforts to reopen the Kona Clubhouse, where staffing cuts and repeated plumbing problems have kept the site largely closed.
Steve Pava, branch chief for the developmental health division’s community mental health center branch, said the Kona Clubhouse once had five staff but now has only three state positions after the legislature abolished two vacancies. "It's virtually impossible for us to operate a clubhouse with just 1 staff member," he said, describing a recent stretch when one employee was on extended leave and the remaining staff had been reassigned to clinic duties. Pava said he has requested a list of eligibles from the Department of Human Resources and will post recruitment links in the meeting chat.
Pava also described repeated sewage leaks at the existing leased space and a temporary relocation of clubhouse activities to an onsite clinic. He said he secured lease documents for a more centrally located property in Kailua‑Kona—near homeless shelters, group homes and bus routes—and asked staff to begin negotiations with the Department of Accounting and General Services to finalize a new lease.
Local nonprofits and providers offered immediate operational help. "We have capacity to bring somebody in at least to be in that supportive position," said Eliza Gebben of Root and Rise, who offered volunteers and programming support. Care Hawaii and other local groups described joint outreach events over the July 4 holiday and said periodic volunteer support or staff rotations could help reopen the clubhouse on a limited schedule.
Council members pressed for clarity about staffing needs and recruitment pathways. Pava said the state hires clubhouses as social worker 3–4 or human service professional 3–4 positions (typically requiring a bachelor’s degree, with experience offsetting education in some cases) and noted temporary "89‑day" hires and flexible hiring differentials as short‑term options. He urged the council to support requests to restore the two abolished positions and to consider converting temporary posts to permanent civil‑service jobs to improve retention.
The council also received an Oahu update from Troy Freitas, who outlined five Oahu clubhouses (Makaha, Kauihi/Hale Ohanalulu, Kolau/Kaneohe, Waipahu Aloha and Diamond Head) and reported most Oahu sites are better staffed and moving through accreditation. Freitas said Oahu supervisors have conducted succession planning and that some Oahu staff may be able to assist the Big Island on a temporary basis, pending adequate Kona staffing to permit rotations.
Next steps noted at the meeting included posting civil‑service job links, sharing contact information in the chat for volunteer coordination, pursuing DAGS lease negotiations for a Kona site, and informal planning for short‑term staffing rotations.
