{"id":309861,"date":"2026-06-16T23:18:15","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T23:18:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/309861\/"},"modified":"2026-06-16T23:18:15","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T23:18:15","slug":"miami-dade-commission-votes-to-open-mental-health-center","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/309861\/","title":{"rendered":"Miami-Dade commission votes to open mental health center"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Steve<\/p>\n

Steve Leifman, a retired judge who championed the opening of a mental health facility, center, receives recognition for his efforts after the item passes during a County Commission meeting on Tuesday, June 16, 2026, at the Stephen P. Clark Government Center in downtown Miami. The commission voted in favor of opening the Miami Center for Mental Health and Recovery, a treatment facility designed for people with mental illness facing minor criminal charges.<\/p>\n

Alie Skowronski<\/p>\n

A long-stalled mental health center for criminal offenders on Tuesday won approval to open from the Miami-Dade County Commission, which opted to put off decisions on how to pay for the facility once one-time revenue sources are exhausted.<\/p>\n

Championed by Steve Leifman, a retired judge, the Miami Center for Mental Health and Recovery<\/a> is now on track to open in 2027 in a renovated state building at 2200 NW Seventh Ave. in Miami. The annual budget for the facility is expected to hit $25 million after five years, with a projected funding gap of $12 million to be absorbed by Miami-Dade\u2019s already strained general budget if Leifman and other supporters of the center can\u2019t find other dollars to make up the gap. That deficit would have been larger, but the administration of Mayor Daniella Levine Cava reduced the planned security budget for the seven-story building from about $3 million a year to $1 million.<\/p>\n

Approval of the operating agreements<\/a> needed to open the county-funded building means Leifman finally has the green light to try and reshape how Miami-Dade handles chronic criminal offenders who also have mental illnesses. Leifman has been leading the charge for a facility that judges could use as an alternative to Miami-Dade\u2019s jails for people whose mental illnesses seem to be the main driver behind their lawbreaking.<\/p>\n

\"Chairman Chairman Anthony Rodriguez speaks during a County Commission meeting on Tuesday, June 16, 2026, at the Stephen P. Clark Government Center in downtown Miami. On the agenda was a vote to open the Miami Center for Mental Health and Recovery, a treatment facility designed for people with mental illness facing minor criminal charges. Alie Skowronski <\/p>\n

\u201cLocking up sick people is a disservice to taxpayers,\u201d Dulce Martinez, a mental-health advocate, told commissioners in the public comment portion of Tuesday\u2019s meeting.<\/p>\n

The 75-bed center will provide treatment, counseling and other services designed to rehabilitate minor offenders whose mental problems are contributing to them repeatedly ending up in police custody. Leifman said the center will be the first of its kind in the country, putting Miami-Dade on the forefront of alternative approaches to using mental-health treatment to reduce arrests \u2014 particularly among a city\u2019s homeless population.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomebody had to be first,\u201d Leifman said after the vote. \u201cAs long as it took, we still have to be first.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Miami-Dade Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and Steven Leifman, a retired Miami-Dade judge, share a hug on June 16, 2026, after the County Commission approved opening a mental health center Leifman has championed for decades. By DOUGLAS HANKS dhanks@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n

The 75-bed center won\u2019t occupy the entire building but could expand in later years if funding allows. Another 45 beds will go to New Direction, a drug-treatment operation that already has a contract with Miami-Dade. WestCare, a nonprofit, will run the new mental-health center.<\/p>\n

\"Commissioner Commissioner Danielle Cohen Higgins tears up while speaking about her brother, who she said she lost to substance abuse. The commission voted in favor of opening the Miami Center for Mental Health and Recovery, a treatment facility designed for people with mental illness facing minor criminal charges. Alie Skowronski <\/p>\n

Voters authorized construction dollars for the $50 million building upgrade more than 20 years ago, and Leifman faced opposition on the commission this year for the agreements and funding needed to open. The sponsor of the stalled legislation to open the center was Commissioner Raquel Regalado, but the legislation that passed Tuesday<\/a> was sponsored by one of Leifman\u2019s top critics, Chair Anthony Rodriguez. Rodriguez said he could support Leifman\u2019s plans with added accountability measures in his legislation, including financial and performance reports and oversight measures.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can expand access to treatment while still protecting taxpayers,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"Commissioner Commissioner Raquel Regalado, right, receives recognition from fellow Commissioner Marleine Bastien, far left, for her work on the item to open the Miami Center for Mental Health and Recovery during a County Commission meeting on Tuesday, June 16, 2026, at the Stephen P. Clark Government Center in downtown Miami. Alie Skowronski <\/p>\n

Rodriguez and other critics on the commission had questioned the finances of the center and Leifman\u2019s predictions that opening it would quickly mean a stream of new grant dollars to sustain it. The five-year financial forecast released by the Levine Cava administration shows the center running a $10 million deficit in its fourth year and a $12 million deficit in year five \u2014 shortfalls Miami-Dade would cover if money can\u2019t be found from other local governments or from a mix of federal, state and private grants.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, we will have very difficult decisions to make in three years,\u201d Commissioner Danielle Cohen Higgins said ahead of the vote. \u201cWe will cross that road when we get there.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Steve Leifman, a retired judge who championed the opening of a mental health facility, center, receives recognition for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":309862,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[123,125,124],"class_list":["post-309861","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-miami","tag-miami","tag-miami-headlines","tag-miami-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/309861","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=309861"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/309861\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/309862"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=309861"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=309861"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=309861"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}