Former Millbury nursing home to become detox

Feb. 20--MILLBURY -- A former nursing home at 29 Main St. is being converted to what Town Manager David J. Marciello termed "a high-end detox," and it will not pose a threat to the community, the manager told a resident who raised concerns about it at a meeting of the Board of Selectmen last week.

In November, Laurie A. Connors, director of planning and development, told selectmen that Sunrise Detox had presented plans to the town's Technical Review Committee for a short-term alcohol and drug detox facility that would only accept private insurance or private-pay individuals.

"The facility would be the first stop after the emergency room," Ms. Connors told the board.

Sunrise Detox, which operates centers in Florida, New Jersey and Georgia, according to its website, bills itself as a "premier center for drug and alcohol detox" and "promises to give you one of the most comfortable medical detox processes available."

Ms. Connors said the first phase of the project includes setting up 40 beds on the first floor and resurfacing the parking lot, but no exterior changes. The project does not require site plan review because it is considered the same use as the previous occupant, Providence House nursing home.

If the initial development is successful, Sunrise Detox would phase in an additional 40 beds on the second floor. A possible third phase would include renovation of the attached house.

The renovation still requires permits from the building inspector, Department of Public Works director and Board of Health, according to Ms. Connors.

Total cost for construction of the first phase is $2.5 million, according to the building permit application filed with the town.

Resident Francis DeSimone told selectmen during the meeting last week that he was concerned about the new outpatient methadone clinic operated by Spectrum Health Systems off Howe Street, a proposed medical marijuana dispensary on North Main Street, and now a detox center downtown, all within a mile.

"There's an awful lot of danger in these places. I can see it," he said.

Millbury police have reported no problems with the methadone clinic, which opened last summer.

Mr. Marciello responded to Mr. DeSimone's worry about Sunrise Detox: "They show up with a car service and a suitcase. They leave with a car service and a suitcase."

He said people being treated at the facility would stay for five to 10 days and would not be allowed out, not even for smoking breaks. Patients would be under 24-hour-a-day medical care.

Patients would be admitted to a rehab facility after they leave the detox center.

"They will not see the light of day until they're discharged," Mr. Marciello said.

Sunrise Detox is not currently licensed by the state Department of Public Health, but it has submitted notice of intent to apply for for a license, a DPH spokeswoman said.

Sunrise Detox is expected to open in Millbury in summer. It would be the company's first Massachusetts site, according to Ms. Connors.

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