Whatcom County decides on a location for its new jail treatment center
Whatcom County Council members have decided that a planned center for mental health and substance abuse treatment will be built on Division Street in Bellingham, rather than at the site of the new jail planned for Ferndale.
The “out-of-custody” model, with facilities away from the jail, was approved on a 6-1 vote Tuesday night. Councilman Ben Elenbaas voted against the plan.
That model shouldn’t preclude additional treatment programs for jail inmates, Councilwoman Kaylee Galloway said during committee discussion Tuesday afternoon.
“For me, it’s important to say ‘Yes, and’ to this. Yes, I want to support this, and also — when push comes to shove — I do think that when we’re starting to talk about jail beds and different kinds of beds because general pop is not going to be the same as a specialized health care bed or treatment bed, and that we’re designing a jail that’s more therapeutic and focused on the correction and recovery and restoration of a human than the punishment of one,” Galloway said.
Councilman Barry Buchanan wanted to make sure that the so-called Behavioral Care Center will be built in such a way that upward expansion will be possible if demand for services expands.
The location and model of the Behavioral Care Center has been an ongoing topic of discussion for the workgroups dedicated to planning the new Whatcom County Jail. The questions at the center of it hinged around whether the BCC will serve people in or out of custody, and where it will be located.
The official proposal presented to the county council would create a facility with an out-of-custody model located at a dedicated campus separate from the jail. Per this proposal, the BCC would be located by the Anne Deacon Center for Hope and a proposed 23-hour Crisis Center on Division Street in Bellingham. The BCC would provide a longer-term treatment option as opposed to a crisis response solution.
Proponents of this model said the main draw is diversion. If people are arrested while having a behavioral health crisis, they may qualify to be sent to the BCC instead of staying in jail and being charged — and avoiding the prosecutorial process altogether. Individuals already in the justice system can also be sent to the BCC as part of a conditional release or plea bargain.
This story was originally published January 28, 2026 at 12:47 PM.
