Hazelden Betty Ford in New York to Centralize, Expand Addiction and Mental Health Services in Newly Renovated Building

New York, N.Y. (December 20, 2021) – In early 2022, the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation will celebrate 30 years of providing addiction treatment in New York City by unveiling a newly renovated space in the Tribeca neighborhood that will enable the nonprofit to offer expanded services amid rising demand stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Hazelden Betty Ford—the nation's largest nonprofit system of substance use disorder treatment, mental health care, recovery resources and related prevention and education services—opened its first New York drug rehab in 1992. For the past decade, it has operated two Manhattan sites, one in Chelsea and another in Tribeca that included sober housing units. To capitalize on the greater accessibility and larger space of its Tribeca location, and to serve more people in response to the escalating need for addiction and mental health care, the organization is converting its sober residences to clinical and office space so that all of its services can be consolidated at the Tribeca location as early as February. In the meantime, current services, which at the moment remain virtual due to the pandemic, will continue seamlessly.

"Hazelden Betty Ford is excited to celebrate three decades as a force of healing and hope in New York City by turning our beautiful Tribeca location into a bustling hub for treatment and therapy services as well as peer-led community support groups and more," said Hazelden Betty Ford President and CEO Joseph Lee, MD. "With so many struggling amid the pandemic with substance use and mental health challenges, we recognized the need to expand our core clinical services and help more people. We'll be able to do that in Tribeca, and we hope this is the beginning of another 30 years in the city."

The Tribeca site—at 283 West Broadway—has roughly 14,000 square feet across six floors and a basement. Hazelden Betty Ford has owned it since 2011. By converting the site's sober residences to clinical space, Hazelden Betty Ford is able to move out of its other leased location in Chelsea. The consolidated site in Tribeca will be home to expanded outpatient addiction and mental health care—including medication-assisted recovery services and LGBTQIA+ programming; immersive educational experiences for healthcare professionals; and robust family and long-term recovery management services.

"The new center will be centrally located, with easy access to public transportation, and much more space overall to provide and expand our most impactful and needed services," said Eliana Leve, director of Hazelden Betty Ford's New York Services. "Because community is so crucial to recovery from addiction and mental health challenges, we also wanted to create a centralized hub—not just for our services but for community groups to hold support meetings."    

For almost three decades, Hazelden Betty Ford's in-person programs in Manhattan have served people from throughout the metropolitan area and neighboring counties. In March 2020, all programming turned virtual to minimize risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving the organization's two sites mostly empty but also making care accessible to people who live farther away. When the new site opens and in-person care resumes, a new era of hybridized services will begin.  

"Turning crisis into opportunity, we not only established world-class virtual services that expanded accessibility but began planning for a full conversion of the Tribeca building," said Janelle Wesloh, vice president of Hazelden Betty Ford's East Region. "Once we open up the renovated site for in-person services—perhaps as early as February—we will also continue to offer virtual services, providing multiple convenient and effective options to the people who need our help."

A 30th anniversary celebration and grand opening for the renovated site will be planned for the spring.