New Hampshire Union Leader – April 21, 2026
By PAUL FEELY
Manchester officials on Tuesday announced a partnership with the Mental Health Center of Greater Manchester (MHCGM) to enhance the city’s response to homelessness, substance use disorder and mental health issues.
Officials said the partnership will create a centralized, one-stop model designed to improve access to services by bringing them under one roof.
The initiative builds on existing resources and infrastructure to ensure individuals can quickly connect with the care they need.
“One of the things that I talked about before the Board of Mayor and Aldermen when we got the funding and contracts approved in February was that we need — as a city, I think — to have a systemic change in how services are offered,” Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais said in a phone
interview Tuesday. “So not creating new services, but the ability to co-locate existing services on-site cuts through bureaucracy, cuts through red tape.”
Ruais said when a person asks for help, there’s a “very limited amount of time” where that person will then accept it and then the mission becomes getting them either into treatment or connected to a resource that they need.
“Having something like the Mental Health Center co-located on-site means that somebody could walk in and say, ‘Today’s the day when I need help,’ and boom — right there you have mental health services, you have recovery support services you have housing services,” Ruais
said. “This is the goal that we’ve long envisioned — that we would create a one-stop service shop for somebody to come in, get help, break the cycle and get back into a sustainable life.”
The project focuses on avoiding duplication of services and streamlining referrals. The effort will include various service providers, to ensure a full-time staff member will be at the new Aged and Infirmed Shelter and the Engagement Center, offering on-site support and improving
real-time access to services such as care coordination, enrollment assistance and housing resources.
“Really, the dream here is that I want recovery services on-site, I want mental health services on-site, I want housing services on-site,” Ruais said. “So everything is right there — the whole ecosystem and continuum is right there at someone’s fingertips. We don’t need to create new
services, we need to create a better system of those services to get people when they’re ready to accept help, and that’s what this first partnership is starting to build here in Manchester.”
Patricia Carty, president and CEO at the Mental Health Center of Greater Manchester, said the partnership reflects a shared commitment to meeting individuals where they are and ensuring they have access to the care they need.
“By aligning our services more closely with the city’s efforts, we can reduce barriers, respond more effectively in moments of crisis, and help individuals move toward stability, recovery and long-term well-being,” Carty said.
The partnership is made possible through a grant provided by Granite United Way as part of the Opioid Abatement Community Grants Program (OACGP.)
Granite United Way administers the OACGP on behalf of the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services and the Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission.
“We are proud to be part of this collaborative work and remain committed to strengthening the health of our community,” Nichole Martin Riemer, president and CEO of Granite United Way said. “We have witnessed firsthand how working together can reduce barriers and ensure
access to these critical services.”
Manchester officials are in the process of recruiting additional partners interested in co-locating staff at the Aged and Infirmed Shelter. Community partners interested in this effort are asked to contact Daley Frenette in the mayor’s office at dfrenette@manchesternh.gov.