The San Mateo County Youth Services Center project will replace Hillcrest Juvenile Hall and associated facilities located on Tower Road in San Mateo with a new Youth Services Center. There is currently no comprehensive Youth Services Center in San Mateo County. The current Juvenile Hall, juvenile courts, probation offices and receiving home, which were constructed between 1947 and 1976, are outdated and overcrowded.
The new Youth Services Center (YSC) will support the full range of services needed by juveniles who require County oversight due to criminal offense, state offense or dependency. The YSC will be the point of entry and central service point for pre- and post-adjudicated youth in San Mateo County. The YSC will provide a campus environment where the Probation Department, Juvenile Court, Health Services, Human Services Agency, County Office of Education and other service providers can work collaboratively to meet the needs of at-risk youth, their families and the community.
Youth services to be offered at the facility include:
§ Comprehensive assessment and screening of youth;
§ Range of housing alternatives including high security, low security, a Girls Ranch and Receiving Home for abused and neglected youth pending placement or reunification;
§ Dual Diagnosis unit to address the needs of youth with substance abuse problems;
§ Primary health care clinic;
§ Mental health services, including individual and group counseling and six-bed unit for severely disturbed adolescents;
§ School programs including classrooms, computer lab, resource room, vocational room and science lab.
The YSC will also provide space for Juvenile Court and Juvenile Probation administration and operations. Construction on the facility began in October 2003. The Girl’s Ranch, a 30-bed girls facility with gender-specific programming is scheduled to open in May 2006, and the Juvenile Hall, adjacent Juvenile Court, Community School, and Probation offices are scheduled to open July 1, 2006.
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