B.J. ROBERTS BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CENTER

Caring for Others in Their Time of Need

The B.J. Roberts Behavioral Health Center was a collaboration between the Hampton-Newport News Community Service Board (CSB), Sentara Healthcare, and PMA Architecture's design team that took a sick building and transformed it into a respite for those seeking help through mental health, substance abuse, and intellectual disability crises in the Hampton and Newport News areas. The project adaptively reused a long-vacant 22,000-square-foot medical facility in Hampton, Virginia, to accommodate a behavioral health center and crisis stabilization unit. The team administered an uplifting and calming vision that supports the client’s mission to “promote prevention, recovery, and self-determination for those affected by mental illness, substance abuse, and intellectual and developmental disabilities to advance the overall well-being of the community.”

The Center was designed to serve multiple functions under the Community Service Board's umbrella:

• Crisis Intervention Team Assessment Center (CITAC): An incarceration diversion program designed to support those experiencing mental health crises
  
  
• 23-Hour Room: Providing ongoing assessment, crisis intervention, and clinical determination
  
  
• Mobile Crisis Response Service: Ability to deploy rapid response to provide care in an environment where they are comfortable
  
  
• Community Stabilization Unit: Bridge service for individuals transitioning between certain levels of care where there is a gap in the availability of services
  
  
• Hearing Room: On-site judicial services for review of court hearings
  
  
• Support Space: Including offices, interview rooms, medicine and other storage rooms, exam rooms, and respite spaces

Healing a sick building

The building was sick. Built in 1975 as the Hampton Training School for Nurses, it has over the years been leased to various medical tenants, including a medical transport company, a dialysis center, and a retinal specialist. However, these tenants relocated to other locations with the last occupant leaving in 2017, and it was transferred to Sentara in 2021. Sitting vacant for years, the building had been neglected and had fallen into serious disrepair. Previously well-maintained vegetation had become overgrown, water had leaked into the building through a failed roof and wall system, and most surfaces inside were covered with black mold. The floor tiles had buckled, the wood-paneled doors had warped, and the drywall and ceiling tiles had essentially dissolved. During early inspections, the design team wore hazmat suits due to the presence of mold and potential asbestos. Chemicals from a long-since-removed dialysis system had seeped into the walls, causing the wood to rot and the steel to corrode. There was little to no insulation in the exterior walls, and no drainage airspace existed between the wall skin and the drywall. The building did not meet current building codes or energy standards. Evidence of vandalism was everywhere: graffiti-covered walls, broken windows and doors later boarded up, and unhoused individuals living there, all adding to the list of problems. The key question was: Can this building be saved?

The simple answer was yes. Through care and attentive considerations, the team took a sick building that no one wanted and transformed it into a full-service behavioral health center for recovery, prevention, and self-determination for those with mental illness, substance abuse, and intellectual and developmental disabilities. The new facility serves as a beacon for those seeking help and second chances, which aptly reflects the renovation project undertaken by the team on the building. This project transformed an underutilized site in the heart of a bustling commercial/residential/healthcare area, revitalizing it as a vibrant and essential part of the community that met all the client’s needs. The transformation of the building yields valuable lessons and innovative solutions for future renovation projects, expanding the possibilities for older buildings even in the most challenging conditions.

America's Behavioral Health at a Glance

The need for facilities like the B.J. Robert Behavioral Health Center is crucial to America's healthcare system. As the nuances of behavioral health become more recognized, the realization that people in crisis need safe spaces to get the assistance they need instead of jail or hospitalization has become clearer. In the United States:

- It is estimated that 23.1% of all U.S. adults have some type of mental illness.

- Two of the most common mental health conditions are depression and anxiety.

- 10% of adults with a mental illness are uninsured.

- 1 person dies by suicide in the U.S. about every 11 minutes

- 46% of people who die by suicide had a diagnosed mental health condition

- 130+ million people live in a designated Mental Health Professional Shortage Area (around 38% of Americans)

- From Mental Health America

Planning for Multiple Uses

It was crucial for the client that all services be located under one roof to facilitate easier staffing and cross-departmental interactions. However, each space needed to be secure from the others to ensure privacy and safety. The challenge was to divide the building so staff could move easily between areas while establishing security points. The solution utilizes interconnecting hallways with key-card-controlled entrances strategically placed between them, enabling nurses, doctors, and other staff to move quickly and securely to various parts of the building.

Designing a "New Dawn"

The PMA design team focused its theme on "Dawn," the beginning of twilight before sunrise, and the appearance of indirect sunlight.

The rising sun marks the beginning of a new day as night comes to an end, and the sun breaking the horizon is symbolic of hope. The anticipation of day grows closer and closer as night comes to a close and a new day is on the horizon.
For those who suffer from mental Illness and find themselves in crisis, it can seem that they are trapped in a never-ending darkness of night. The goal of the B.J. Roberts Behavioral Health Center is to help patients find hope through various treatment forms, empowering them as members of the broader community. The different colors in the sky each morning reflect the idea that every person has a unique experience when it comes to mental health, and their journey from darkness to new light is beautiful. Dawn brings in CSB’s core values of dignity, respect, and development.

When night is almost done,
And sunrise grows so near
That we can reach the spaces,
It’s time to smooth the hair.

And get the dimples ready,
And wonder we could care
For that old faded midnight
That frightened but an hour.

“Dawn” by Emily Dickenson

Healing a Building to Heal those in Need

The B.J. Roberts Behavioral Health Center offers a comprehensive facility to support individuals dealing with mental illness, substance abuse, and developmental disabilities. Focused primarily on crisis response and community stabilization, the design team developed a concept that symbolizes the journey patients undertake from the darkness of mental crises to the light of a new day filled with hope and well-being. The optimism of “Dawn” is woven throughout the building, inspiring HNNCSB’s healthcare approach. The design and the facility work together to realize the board’s vision and provide a refuge for those seeking a second chance and a fresh start.