Today we’d like to introduce you to Leonard Kincaid.
In 2010, a team of Houston representatives toured Haven for Hope, an innovative program that serves San Antonio’s homeless. Across the street was a smaller building blending in with the background which housed the Public Sobering Unit, a program of The Center for Health Care Services Restoration Center. Instead of booking public intoxicants into jail, San Antonio law enforcement dropped them off at the Sobering Unit to get sober safely. This saved officers time and reduced court and jail costs.
At that time, Houston jails were overcrowded and low-level offenses, including public intoxication, stressed jail limits. The court and law enforcement systems were also strained and individuals arrested received no assistance to address their substance use. The criminal justice system was a revolving door for addiction.
Inspired by San Antonio’s solutions, the idea to create a sobering center in Houston took root. Leonard and HPD Lieutenant Mike Lee worked to create a plan and proposed it to the City of Houston. Mayor Anise Parker and Council Member Ed Gonzalez championed the cause. Within three years of that first San Antonio visit, the Houston Recovery Center was approved, funded and fully operational. Serving public intoxicants plus offering them an array of addiction recovery support and programs, there is no sobering center model of its kind in the country.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
With support from local elected officials and the recovery community, we have achieved much progress for addiction recovery in a short amount of time. However, some of the biggest challenges remaining are the limited availability of publicly-funded treatment resources, primarily detox programs, and sober housing. Since we do not provide these services through our programs, we work in partnership with existing resources to meet client needs. Our employees have become very creative in engaging with existing resources and we are always looking for opportunities and partnerships that support this population.
Please tell us about Houston Recovery Center.
The Houston Recovery Center was established by the City of Houston as an innovative solution to the costly problem of public intoxication. Since we opened, jail admissions for public intoxication have dropped over 90%. Our expertise is working with addiction, specializing in the recovery process, to stabilize and improve client quality of life. The Houston Recovery Center accomplishes this through two programs: 1. Sobering Center- offers safe, short-term monitoring and management of persons under the influence of alcohol and drugs through brief and long-term interventions; 2. Partners in Recovery- eighteen months of integrated recovery support and case management with clinical and peer recovery staff. Our peer recovery coaches, referred to as Recovery Support Specialists, are vital to our programs as they build trust and rapport with clients and encourage them on their unique path of recovery.
We welcome anyone interested to visit our website at www.houstonrecoverycenter.org to learn more about our services and recovery-oriented model.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://houstonrecoverycenter.org/
- Phone: 713.236.7800
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