DuPage County’s Crisis Recovery Center has been open for a year as a place dedicated to supporting immediate mental health needs — and county leaders say it’s working.
Of the 2,290 total admissions to the center on the county campus in Wheaton during its first year, 97% of cases — or 2,221 of them — were resolved without the need for hospital admission, said Adam Forker, executive director of the DuPage County Health Department.
Similarly, 98% of the 2,451 calls to 988 or the county’s mental health crisis hotline were handled through phone support without further assistance needed.
“Together we built a safe, stigma-free alternative to emergency rooms and 911,” Forker said about the Crisis Recovery Center, “and it is working.”
After recovery center’s first year, ‘people already know it’s there’
Since opening on Sept. 2, 2025, the Crisis Recovery Center has provided immediate mental health needs assessment, stabilization for those experiencing crisis, observation for sobering from alcohol and support for withdrawal management from drugs — all with “compassionate care” for people of all ages, Forker said.
The majority of the cases addressed during the center’s first year — 1,798 of them — were adults, but the center also assisted youth a total of 386 times.
The center served a total of about 1,700 unique individuals during its first year, some of them more than once. Forker told DuPage County Board members during their meeting this week that strong usage of the facility is a positive indicator that efforts to decrease stigma around mental health support are progressing.
“It did not exist more than a year ago, but people already know it’s there,” Forker said about the center, known as the CRC. “They’re recognizing when they need that help and getting it.”
New funds to support Crisis Recovery Center operations
The recovery center also received a financial boost during the county’s most recent meeting on Tuesday evening. The York Township 708 Mental Health board, led by former County Board member Michael Ledonne, presented a $250,000 check from its own funding sources to support CRC operations.
“Township dollars helping sustain a county resource is exactly how local government is supposed to work — standing side by side for the people we all serve,” Ledonne told County Board members. “Thank you for letting us stand with you.”
Forker also said the center has made “significant progress in diversifying our revenue sources” during its first year to support long-term sustainability of services.
Accessing mental health help in crisis
To access the DuPage County Crisis Recovery Center, call 988 or (630) 627-1700 — both of which are available 24/7/365 — or visit in-person at 115 N. County Farm Road in Wheaton.
Services at the center are available to people of all ages, regardless of ability to pay.
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