An 1970s-era school building in Brookhaven Park where dozens of DeKalb County’s disabled residents spend their weekdays is scheduled to be torn down and the services at the facility relocated.
The City of Brookhaven has designated $5 million in SPLOST II dollars to relocate Claratel Behavioral Health, formerly named DeKalb Community Service Board, from Brookhaven Park. Claratel is the largest behavioral health provider in DeKalb County.
Claratel is a nonprofit, community-based behavioral health and developmental disabilities services organization with more than 20 locations in DeKalb, and more than 500 direct care and support staff members, according to the website. With 3,000 active clients — 100 percent of whom have serious mental illness as defined by the state of Georgia — Claratel serves low income, underinsured clients.
Claratel is a safety net for Region 3, treating patients from DeKalb, Fulton and Clayton counties. For adults with developmental disabilities, Claratel provides educational, therapeutic, and behavioral support services to individuals ages 21 and up and their families. Programs are designed to provide opportunities for individuals to maximize their independence, the website states.
Located in Brookhaven Park for decades, Claratel has outgrown the building in more ways than one. In 2024, Brookhaven spent $8.8 million renovating Brookhaven Park by adding innovative playground equipment, three pavilions, restrooms, a dog park and dog splash pad, and landscaping. The antiquated Claratel building was not upgraded as part of those efforts.
Larry Fuller, vice president of Claratel Developmental Disabilities Services, said the facility is riddled with problems.
During a flood last year, clients had to be moved to a different location. Then the building’s HVAC system stopped working, and the roof started leaking, Fuller said. The concrete walls block wifi reception. Electrical outlets, lighting, and the building entrance are all outdated.
“The building is deteriorating at a rapid rate, and the clients don’t deserve that,” Fuller said. “If the environment isn’t good for them, you’re just going to start to have deterioration in their acuity, their participation, and their functionality.”
Brookhaven Park has not been a good location for Claratel, Fuller said. People leave trash in their building’s dumpsters, thinking it belongs to the city. Parking is an issue, and staff have complained about off-leash dogs. City officials say they are aware of these problems and trying to address them on a case-by-case basis in the spirit of inclusivity, said a city spokesperson.
“We’ve had dogs run up on clients trying to get in the van. Don’t forget, [many clients] are in wheelchairs and they’re being pushed. A lot of our staff members don’t get out of their cars until people with large dogs put them away,” Fuller said.
A large dog entered the building one day, scaring immobile clients who lack the ability to protect themselves, Fuller said. Staff members had to extricate the animal.
“We have the homeless population that lays on the side of the building, and we have to ask them to get up and move, or they try to come in the building and use the restroom. And a lot of people come in the building thinking this is a gym,” Fuller said.
The search for a new location is underway, and that Claratel has narrowed it down to four or five possible buildings that will need to be renovated. DeKalb County has not committed to contribute to the relocation or renovation, Fuller said.
Fuller estimated in the next 18 months, Claratel will be able to open a new facility that fits their clients’ needs. Claratel has plans to add and expand autism services, physical therapy, acute behaviors, specialists, tele-psych and counseling for medication management, ADA compliance, and classrooms.
“We want to transform what happens in DeKalb County, then other counties, and the rest of the state,” Fuller said.
The city plans to reclaim the park land upon Claratel’s departure.
Council member Madeleine Simmons said the agreement allows the city to support Claratel’s mental health initiatives and disability services by providing funding for a new state-of-the-art building. It will really make a “generational impact on DeKalb County residents,” she said.
“This is a symbol of a new era, a new period of collaboration and working together with DeKalb County — something we have not always enjoyed,” Brookhaven Mayor John Park added.
