Crisis Triage Center construction advances; operators outline 3–6 month licensing and ramp‑up timeline

Officials gave a construction and operational update on the Horizon Behavioral Health Center Crisis Triage Center (CTC) and described the steps required between construction completion and client intake.

Manager Hobart (project delivery) said the project used a design‑build approach with James Corporation as prime contractor and architects and contractors integrated into a single team. Hobart described the site plan and said the building footprint is about 12,000 square feet with a 16‑patient inpatient adult unit and 10 recliners for observation spaces. The building includes a sally port for law enforcement and EMS access and had made “significant progress” on exterior walls and roof systems; substantial completion was targeted for September after weather delays pushed back the original August schedule.

Rob Neely, representing Community Bridges (the CTC operator), outlined post‑construction steps that must be completed before the facility can accept patients: licensing with the New Mexico Health Care Authority (HCA) including letter of intent, application packet and state inspection (3–6 months typical), Medicaid provider enrollment, provider‑specific rate setting (New Mexico uses cost‑based bundled rates for crisis triage centers), and contracting with Medicaid managed care organizations. Neely said some health plans had already provided contracts for non‑Medicaid lines of business and that those could be executed to allow earlier service delivery while Medicaid enrollment and rate setting proceed.

Neely and Hobart both emphasized workforce recruitment as an essential path to operations and said Community Bridges will recruit locally with support from New Mexico Health Resources and its national staffing resources for initial training and deployment. Hobart confirmed the City of Clovis is the fiscal agent and owner of the facility; commissioners discussed the expected revenue gap while the facility ramps up and said grant writers and consortium efforts will seek to bridge start‑up operational shortfalls.

Why it matters: The CTC represents regional crisis capacity (adult inpatient and observation care) that local law enforcement and health systems will rely on for diversion from emergency rooms and jails. The timeline between construction finish and operations depends on state licensing and Medicaid processes that typically take months; local leaders should plan for an operational funding gap during ramp‑up.

Next steps: Work continues on HCA licensing and Medicaid enrollment; officials estimated licensing and enrollment activities could align with a possible three‑to‑six‑month timeline, meaning service delivery will lag behind construction substantial completion. Local stakeholders committed to seeking grants and coordinated revenue strategies to cover the interim period.