Norwich ― A former childcare center and medical office building on Fanning Avenue soon will become the state’s second short-term residential facility for up to 10 youths recovering from mental and behavioral health crises.

The Commission on the City Plan voted unanimously Tuesday to approve a plan by the nonprofit Community Health Resources to renovate the vacant one-story building at 78 Fanning Ave. into a 10-bedroom Sub-Acute Crisis Stabilization program for up to 10 youths ages 5 to 18.

The building, owned by Waterford Country School, is listed as a childcare center in city property records.

The Norwich plan still needs a license from the state Department of Children and Families, which will be sought after renovations, said Heather Gates, president and chief executive officer of Community Health Resources. CHR hopes to complete the interior renovations and obtain the state license to open by this fall, Gates said.

CHR officials said the program would serve youths being discharged from hospital emergency rooms and in need of short-term stabilization programs for mental or behavioral health crises. The only similar facility is in Hartford. The Norwich facility will serve up to five children ages 5 to 12 in one area, and up to 10 older children, ages 13 to 18, or up to age 21 if the youth is in DCF care.

Youths would stay at the facility for one to 14 days and would be supervised by trained staff 24 hours a day. Overnight, a minimum of three counselors would be on duty. During the day, the facility would be staffed by licensed therapists, nursing and psychiatry staff, said Jennifer Nadeau, senior vice president of child and family services for CHR.

Treatment would include individual care and family therapy, with the child’s parents on hand. Nadeau said all residents would be supervised 24/7, including time spent outside in the small lawn area, where a picnic table or chairs could be set up. No playgrounds or active recreational equipment are planned.

All placements at the facility would be voluntary.

“The goal is to stabilize them and get them back to parents,” Nadeau said.

During a public hearing Tuesday, neighbors Carla and Douglas Church of 71 Fanning Ave. strongly objected to the facility being placed in their neighborhood. Carla Church said the couple has lived there for 18 years and said the facility was not suitable for the neighborhood and would hurt property values.

“If you accept this, I am moving out of this town,” Carla Church said. “This is an atrocity. There’s got to be another place.”

Another neighbor, Thomas DiStasio of 57 Fanning Ave., said he is a retired employee of several state inpatient mental health hospitals in the state, including Norwich Hospital in Preston, Connecticut Valley Hospital and Whiting Forensic Hospital in Middletown and at group homes.

DiStasio said his main concern was to ensure the Norwich facility had adequate staffing for the youths. DiStasio also asked if there would be outdoor recreation for the resident youths.

“This population is very difficult to treat,” DiStasio said. “One has to have a lot of patience and experience with them. You have to be creative and think outside the box.”

Gates said no outdoor recreation structures, such as playgrounds, are planned. If CHR wants to add them, the group would need to come back to the commission for approval.

Commission members said the proposed use fits in with surrounding uses, which include medical offices and Backus Hospital. The commission required CHR to install a 6-foot-high fence along Zepher Street.

c.bessette@theday.com