Newport’s mental health urgent care center, Front Porch, will begin offering overnight stays this week. The expansion marks the next step in a long effort to improve access to emergency mental health care in the Northeast Kingdom. After months of renovation, the site will now include four beds where people can stay for up to ten days.
Front Porch opened in June 2024 on Lakemont Road. It became the first and only walk-in mental health urgent care program in Vermont to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. But until now, visitors could stay for no more than 23 hours and 59 minutes because the facility was not licensed for overnight care.
With the new overnight beds, people can seek help without being admitted to a hospital or getting a doctor’s referral. The center is designed to offer a safe place for anyone in a mental health crisis, whether the crisis is large or small. It also helps people avoid hospital emergency rooms or calling 911.
“You can come here and stay in your own community,” said Kelsey Stavseth, executive director of Northeast Kingdom Human Services, the organization that runs Front Porch. “Our goal is to stabilize people close to home so they don’t need to go inpatient. It’s built for anyone struggling with mental health needs.”
State mental health officials often describe their “continuum of care” model as providing “someone to call, someone who can come to you, and somewhere to go.” Front Porch fills the “somewhere to go” role. It works alongside the 988 suicide lifeline and Vermont’s county-based mobile crisis teams, which send clinicians to meet people wherever they need help.
Front Porch became possible through state grant funding after the COVID-19 pandemic increased the need for more inpatient psychiatric care and community urgent care options. The building and land originally cost $1.3 million. Renovations added another $1.9 million. The state provided $2 million, and Northeast Kingdom Human Services covered the rest with $1 million from its reserves.
Before Front Porch opened, people in the Newport area had few choices besides crowded hospital emergency departments. Vermont has invested more than $3 million since 2023 to create alternatives to emergency rooms, including urgent care centers like Front Porch. The program now also receives money from the state’s General Fund.
Across Vermont, seven other programs serve as emergency department alternatives for adults and children. These include Interlude in Middlebury, the Access Hub in Montpelier, and Howard Center’s Mental Health Urgent Care in Burlington. For children, services are available in Bennington, Morristown, and Brattleboro.
In the Northeast Kingdom, the system seems to be working. Stavseth said 96% of people who leave Front Porch return to the community. When factoring in outcomes from the crisis line and mobile support teams, that number is between 85% and 90%.
He hopes the longer stays will help people build resilience and stability. Being able to remain local is crucial, he said. People can stay at Front Porch overnight and still commute to their jobs, avoiding lost income while receiving support.
“Having a professional place to go is good,” he said. “But resilience also comes from having work, supportive relationships, and secure housing. We want to help people strengthen those parts of their lives.”
A home-like space
The new bedrooms look more like guest rooms than medical facilities. Each space has pine furniture, large windows, and nature-themed art. Above each door is a small window that allows residents to see whether lights are on in the shared living space while maintaining privacy.
During a September visit, the center featured an open kitchen, tables and chairs, and a living room with high ceilings and pine beams. Bathrooms with single stalls, showers, and marble tile line the edges of the space. The design follows nature-based principles shown to support mental and physical well-being.
The services themselves remain similar to what Front Porch offered before, but people can now receive them for longer, continuous periods.
The center accepts all ages. There is no minimum level of severity required to receive help.
“Stress and anxiety can come from a flood, losing housing or a job, or from raising kids,” Stavseth said. “People ask, ‘What’s the threshold to come here?’ They just need to show up. We’ll help figure out what they need.”
What happens when someone arrives
Visitors complete an assessment to identify what support is appropriate. If they have a medical need, the staff connects them to the hospital. Otherwise, the center can help with a wide range of issues, including suicidal thoughts, anxiety, or stress at home.
People can join group sessions, meet individually with a therapist, spend time in the community garden, or relax in the living room. They can also get coffee, take a shower, or simply rest.
Front Porch also uses peer support specialists. One of them, Byron Savoy, described the role as “radically egalitarian.”
“We’re not authorities. We’re not experts,” he said. “We listen. Sometimes that’s the most important thing.”
The staff then helps connect people to other services, such as food assistance, housing help, substance use treatment, or long-term mental health care. Often, Stavseth said, the simple act of being heard by a peer is powerful.
“Stigma fades when someone says, ‘I’ve been through the same thing. Let’s talk.’ It’s not about diagnosing. It’s about support.”
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