Contra Costa County has cut the ribbon on the Oak Grove Behavioral Health Campus in Concord, a county-run hub that provides urgent behavioral health screening, outpatient care, and what officials call the county's first peer respite under one roof. The renovated county buildings on Oak Grove Road are designed to move people into appropriate care quickly instead of routing them to already crowded emergency rooms. County and city leaders say the opening marks a multi-agency push to grow frontline mental health services close to where people live.
What's on the new campus
According to Contra Costa Health, the Oak Grove site at 1034 Oak Grove Road includes a Wellness Clinic for rapid screening, a Peer Resilience Center staffed by trained peer specialists, and direct links to outpatient services. The county also identifies the A3 Miles Hall Crisis Call Center and the countywide Behavioral Health Access Line as formal parts of the broader A3 campus operations. Officials say the goal is to give people low-barrier, non-emergency support so they can get the right level of help faster.
Ribbon cutting and funding
As reported by Contra Costa News, county supervisors, Concord officials and Congressman Mark DeSaulnier attended the July ribbon cutting. The outlet noted that Measure X and a federal appropriation helped pay for the renovation, and that the county expects the campus to serve residents seven days a week. Local leaders said the campus is intended to cut down on unnecessary hospital trips while connecting people with housing and community resources.
How it was built and paid for
County records show the Board of Supervisors signed off on the Oak Grove Center project in 2024 and authorized bids for renovation work at the Oak Grove site. According to Contra Costa County Legistar, the project carried an estimated price tag of about $6.1 million, with roughly $1 million coming from a federal HRSA grant and the remainder from Measure X funds. County documents state the work repurposes existing county buildings instead of constructing new ones.
Why the peer respite matters
Peer respites are voluntary, short-term programs run by people with lived experience that aim to help stabilize people in distress without hospitalization. California has recently created new funding streams for these types of services. The state's Behavioral Health Services Oversight & Accountability Commission released a Peer Respite RFA on July 1 that offers $8.5 million to launch pilot projects across the state, according to BHSOAC. Advocates say peer respites can lower emergency room use and provide a more humane, peer-centered path toward recovery.
Neighbors and operations
Neighbors raised concerns during public meetings, and the county adjusted its plans in response, cutting proposed hours, adding gates and designating roughly 44 to 48 dedicated parking spaces, according to Locunity. Meeting notes also show that the Miles Hall Crisis Call Center was shifted to a non-residential building during the planning process. Officials say those changes were intended to balance neighborhood worries with the need to maintain countywide crisis support.
How to get help
The county advises anyone in a behavioral health crisis to call the A3 Miles Hall Crisis Call Center at 844-844-5544 or, for non-emergent help, the Behavioral Health Access Line at 888-678-7277, according to Contra Costa Health. In life-threatening situations, people should still call 911 or contact the 988 suicide prevention lifeline. County officials say the Oak Grove campus is one more piece of the A3 system, intended to steer people toward timely, less restrictive care.
County officials and local advocates describe the Oak Grove campus as a practical move toward reshaping crisis care in Contra Costa, pairing phone-based triage with a physical place to go. The campus is now open, and county and city staff plan to hold neighborhood check-ins as operations settle. For photos and the county's announcement, see the post from Contra Costa Health.
