A residential in-patient treatment center is currently being constructed in Bemidji near Wilton. The Northern Minnesota Addiction Wellness Center will be the first co-ed science-based treatment center in Beltrami County.

The 32-bed facility is classified as a high and medium intensity substance use disorder treatment facility. There will be two beds to a room, and the center will offer resources to teach its clients about the disease and how it affects them mentally and physically. Northern Minnesota Addiction Wellness Center CEO Margot Kelsey says she hopes that the center will break down the barrier for care in the community.

“We as a society isolate and punish with this disease, and the disease does that already. So, then we, as a society, put people through the penal system, which creates worse addiction cycles and better supply chains, unfortunately,” Kelsey said.

The facility is set to open in late February.

By — Malaak Khattab

News Reporter