Photo: New York City Council
Sept. 25, 2024 By Shane O’Brien
Elected officials and mental health advocates gathered in Elmhurst on Friday to celebrate the council’s decision to restore $2 million in funding for Mental Health Clubhouses across the city.
The clubhouses provide critical services and support for New Yorkers living with serious mental illnesses but faced closure after the Adams administration announced a plan to consolidate the clubhouses into larger central locations of 300 patients or more earlier in the year, cutting off funding to the more intimate spaces that the clubhouses provided.
The City Council voted to reverse the cuts implemented by the mayor, restoring the funding as part of the Fiscal Year 2025 budget.
Council Members Shekar Krishnan, Linda Lee and Gale Brewer were joined by representatives of clubhouses across the city at the Elmhurst Hospital-based Lifelinks Clubhouse at 79-01 Broadway to celebrate the restoration of funding.
The clubhouses serve as comprehensive mental health hubs, offering access to healthcare, legal assistance, educational resources, employment support and community-building opportunities. They also help members find affordable housing, health insurance and supplemental security income.
Council members said Friday that the restored funding will allow crucial programs to continue, expanding mental health services in neighborhoods across the city and ensuring New Yorkers with mental illness receive the support they need.
Krishnan said the reopening of mental health clubhouses was a major victory for the city’s mental health services.
“This funding ensures that those with serious mental illnesses can access life-changing resources and find community in their own neighborhoods,” Krishnan said in a statement.
Lee, Chair of the Committee on Mental Health, Disabilities, and Addiction, said the clubhouses play a vital role in the city’s mental health infrastructure, adding that the restoration of funding will allow patients to receive comprehensive, community-based care.
Michael Petti, a member of the Lifelinks Clubhouse, said the restoration of funding had helped secure patients’ continued safe havens and paid tribute to the council’s efforts to restore funding.
“Mental illness does not have a one size fits all solution. You have helped us secure our continued safe haven as mental illness is not an easy thing to talk about,” Petti said.
Lawrence Fowler, deputy executive director of the Emma L. Bowen Community Service Center and Rainbow Clubhouse in the Bronx, said the council had recognized the impact and importance of community-based clubhouses have on hundreds of members throughout the city.
“Thanks to their leadership and commitment, all of our members continue to thrive in their supportive environments, gaining confidence and most importantly self-worth,” Fowler said.
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