By Andrew Hackmack
The counseling center purchased the three-story building at 50 W. Hawthorne St. in Valley Stream late last year. All clinical services, which were spread throughout four locations in southwest Nassau County, have been consolidated into the new facility.
Herb Ruben, executive director of the Peninsula Counseling Center, said that the building was completely renovated to meet their needs. The first floor has a lobby and parking, and there's almost 25,000 square feet of office space between the second and third floors.
"It becomes a much more efficient and better coordinated operation," Ruben said of the counseling center, which now has its entire clinical staff under one roof. Services were spread out between other offices in Woodmere, Lawrence, Lynbrook and Valley Stream.
Ruben said although the center closed those offices, the new Valley Stream location is convenient. "The railroad station is just a block and a half from here," he said. "There are other bus routes to get here as well." Additionally, there are 64 parking spaces on site as well as eight metered spots directly in front of the building.
With 178 five-foot wide windows, Ruben called the new center a "cheerful" place. The new building also allows them to have conference rooms and a 130-seat auditorium, facilities the Peninsula Counseling Center never had before at any of its previous locations. "We would have to rent space in other community buildings," Ruben said, on if there was a need for a large group meeting space.
The building has been named the Fay J. Lindner Pavilion. Ruben explained that the Peninsula Counseling Center received a sizeable grant from the Fay J. Lindner Foundation, which went toward the purchase of the Hawthorne Street building.
Employees of the counseling center say they are delighted by their new surroundings. "I think it's an environment that is more conducive to getting healthy," said Andrea D'Avanzo, an intake social worker. "Both for patients and staff, there's an increased sense of well-being."
Social worker Carrie Ann Sabato called the new building an inviting atmosphere and said she is pleased how much more group meeting space there is. She also said that it is nice to be with colleagues that were previously at other locations. "I feel that we'll be able to collaborate a lot more and be more innovative with new programs," she said.
Dr. Lois Goldsmith, associate director of the counseling center, said she already has some new programs in mind. She said she would like to start a marital center which offers education programs for people in relationships. Rather than seeing couples after problems start, these programs would be aimed at preventing martial and relationship difficulties.
The center received a grant through the New York Office of Mental Health to start a prevention program with local school districts. Ruben said the program will be used to help identify potential problems with children and the hope is to screen 3,000 kids per year beginning as early as kindergarten. Over the next five years, the center is expected to receive more than $1 million in funding for the program.
The Peninsula Counseling Center was established in 1913 and was originally known as the Relief Association of Lawrence. The new Valley Stream office is the organization's first venture into property ownership. "I think it will help us to deliver services in a way that will enhance what we've already been doing for 95 years," Goldsmith said.
The building opened in 1989 and was purchased by the Peninsula Counseling Center last December. It allowed two insurance companies to remain through June and renovations began promptly on July 1, Ruben said. "The whole interior of the building was gutted except for the lobby," he said. "We have a layout that we were able to design."
Tricia Baylis, a unit administrator in the chemical dependency treatment program, said she has already received a lot of positive feedback. "We're absolutely thrilled and so are our clients," she said. "They feel wonderful coming to this facility."
Baylis said that with the increased space, she can now host group meetings of up to 15 people. In the chemical dependency treatment program, she said that group sessions are an integral part of the process.
In addition to the chemical dependency treatment program, the facility also houses child-adolescent, adult and older adult (over 60) services. All of Peninsula Counseling Center's administrative offices are also located at the new Valley Stream office.
The Franklin Place office in Woodmere and the St. Joseph's Church facility in Hewlett remain open. Those locations house the Peninsula Counseling Center's day programs, Ruben explained, which are very different from the clinical services where a typical appointment is 45 minutes to an hour.
The Valley Stream office has 60 staff members and will average about 600 clients per week, Ruben said. He hopes that being just a half-block from Rockaway Avenue will provide a boost to the village's downtown businesses. "I believe our presence here, on some levels, is going to help the economy in Valley Stream," he said.
