Larimer County celebrates expansion of youth behavioral health services with opening of adolescent unit at Longview

More than 100 people gathered Monday on the Larimer County Behavioral Health Services at Longview campus to celebrate an expansion of youth services that will be available at a new adolescent unit. 

Youth have been able to get urgent behavioral health care at the taxpayer-supported Acute Care facility since it opened Dec. 2, 2023. The new unit adds yet another layer of care for youth and young adults who need short-term, overnight care related to crisis stabilization and withdrawal management. 

“I hope parents, guardians, friends, educators, coaches, mentors, and people working in behavioral health can join me in knowing this is a place where the youth in their lives can receive high-quality, compassionate behavioral health care,” said Amy Martonis, director of Larimer County Behavioral Health Services. 

The team from SummitStone Health Partners meets people exactly where they are. Sometimes, that is the most powerful thing for a person on their journey to well-being.”

Monday’s crowd also celebrated taxpayers’ forward-thinking investment in the facility, where people of all ages can go to the behavioral health urgent care – 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.

Larimer County voters approved the dedicated behavioral health tax in 2018, and funds went toward construction and ongoing operations of the Acute Care facility. In a unique public-private partnership, Larimer County contracts with SummitStone to provide services.

About the adolescent unit

The unit will be for clients between the ages of 12 and 17.

Work to obtain all necessary licensure has been underway. Once the state completes its process, the hope is to open the unit later this fall.

Services at Acute Care, like the behavioral health urgent care, 23-hour observation, pharmacy and lab, have been provided to youth clients since the facility opened.

What changes with this unit coming online is the addition of short-term overnight care of between five and seven days. The unit will initially have five beds and expand to eight over time.

There has long been a need to add overnight beds for youth in Larimer County. Although the state recently announced an encouraging decline in youth suicide – the rate is the lowest since 2007 –, the needs of people in our communities and school-age populations continue to evolve and demand additional resources.

“It is only eight beds,” said Dr. Brooks, executive director of the Acute Care facility and SummitStone chief medical officer, “but it is eight more than we’ve had in this community, and eight more spaces where our kids can heal.” 

Features of the unit include a sensory space and nook, sun room, library, living and dining rooms. There is also a patio and backyard recreation space. Services offered will include therapeutic individual and group sessions, medication management, nursing support, occupational therapy, and various activity, creative and experiential groups. 

The unit has existed at the Acute Care facility since its opening. A team from Delehoy Construction did work on the unit in fall of 2025 to make the space more welcoming and compliant with the state’s additional licensing requirements related to youth care.

A barrier was built so adult clients in the facility can neither see nor hear adolescent clients; modifications have also been made to schedules, to keep adolescents separate when moving through the facility. Acute Care staff underwent additional, more-stringent background checks and physicals to work on the unit.

Initially, there will be a “soft opening” of the unit to clients who are referred through the Larimer County Department of Human Services. 

Staff from DHS and SummitStone have spent months planning for the opening and done things like cross-train staff from both organizations, so care looks and feels as similar as possible for adolescents and their families – regardless of where their care journey begins. DHS staff, who specialize in adolescent care, have also helped design the unit’s healing-focused environment and culture.

The unit will then open to adolescents community-wide, with a goal of doing so later in 2025. More information, including a specific date, will be shared when it is available.

How we got here

The Behavioral Health Services at Longview campus, or Longview for short, is nestled along the foothills between Loveland and Fort Collins. 

After two previous ballot measures failed, voters said ‘yes’ to a 0.25% sales-and-use tax – or 25 cents on every $100 spent in Larimer County. The original vision for the Longview campus included not only the Acute Care facility but additional buildings for things like a separate adolescent wing. 

Community members came together in 2020 to break ground on the facility. Fast forward, and a pandemic-related rise in construction costs far exceeded original estimates to build and open the one facility. In total, it cost about $43 million to open the doors to the Acute Care facility.

This prompted the decision to not construct additional buildings on the Longview campus at that time. To honor commitments made to voters, whose approval of the behavioral health tax made the entire campus possible, Larimer County and SummitStone staff opted to move forward with opening a modified adolescent unit at the Acute Care facility.

Since Acute Care’s opening in December 2023, the SummitStone team has seen about 600 to 700 monthly visits to the behavioral health urgent care. Of those, about 250 clients are admitted for further crisis stabilization or substance-use services. 

Between opening day and June 30, 2025, 5,565 unique clients (about 10% are ages 0 to 17) made 10,940 visits to Acute Care. The majority of clients are walk-ins.

“Thanks to the county’s sales-tax initiative, we can now offer this facility and our services to fill important gaps in behavioral healthcare. We are seeing more clients than ever before, with more complex needs,” said Dr. Brooks.

Our Longview team has stepped up with amazing skill and compassion. Their strength during challenging times shows their deep commitment to helping others. They truly embrace our mission of serving the community, no matter the situation. Their dedication has transformed how care is provided in our community, creating meaningful progress for everyone we serve. ”

Since the 2018 ballot measure passed, tax dollars have been primarily invested in the Acute Care facility and annual Impact Fund Grant Program, helping Larimer County deliver on its promise to improve behavioral health care across the county.

In the past seven years, $17.7 million in grants have been awarded to 77 unique organizations that provide behavioral health care to youth and their families, veterans, first responders, historically marginalized populations, people who benefit from care in non-clinical settings, and more.

The Behavioral Health Services Department is exploring additional community-driven investments that meet critical gaps in and strengthen the system of behavioral health care in Larimer County.

Learn more on the Larimer County Behavioral Health Services website at www.larimer.gov/behavioralhealth