Santa Cruz County opens sobering center

Sobering up is taking on a new form in Santa Cruz County. Now anyone arrested for being drunk in public will be taken to a sobering center, instead of heading straight to jail. The center opened Monday on Water St., with a total of 9 beds. But employees think some days, that may not be enough.

“Especially during tourism season we are going to be pretty full. So I would say capacity is a concern of ours right now,” Janus Sobering Center program manager Gabriel Miller said.

The center said it’s designed for people who aren’t arrested for more serious offenses, who don’t have a record and aren’t aggressive during their intake.

“I look at it as an opportunity to really reach a population that may have not thought about the recovery before,” Miller said.

With help from a $2 million dollar federal grant to operate over the next three years, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s office said the center will cut down on resources that are already stretched too thin at the jail.

“This will free up some of the patrol officers around the county, so they can get back out on the street and uh and deal with more important issues,” said Sgt. Kelly Kent.

Until now, a sobering cell at the Santa Cruz County Jail used to be the only option. Now, people arrested only for public intoxication will be taken to a more home-like location, where they’ll spend a few hours sobering up on a bed.

The center will have medical staff on hand, around the clock. But the program says it’s not designed for long term solutions.

“It’s important that people recognize that we are not a shelter and that they have to be brought in by the police,” Miller said.

For those who do need long term help, the center said it will provide information on where to get it. People who are brought here to the sobering center, can’t be held against their will, like they would be at the jail. The center said if someone decides to leave before they’re sober, they will remind that person they could be re-arrested.