A proposed addiction treatment clinic in Madison is nearing final approval from town officials, almost two years after the provider’s original plans to open in the center of town sparked public backlash and led town voters to enact new restrictions on possible sites.

The Select Board has scheduled two public hearings this month on Acadia Healthcare’s application for a license to open its clinic at the Madison Business Gateway industrial park off Route 148.

The first is planned at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Main Street Middle School, 205 Main St. in Madison. The second is set for 6:30 p.m. Jan. 26 at the Select Board’s usual meeting location at the Old Point Avenue School, 108 Old Point Ave.

Under the ordinance voters passed at a 2024 special town meeting, an organization seeking a license to open an outpatient substance use disorder treatment program must first file its application with the code enforcement officer, which records show Acadia did in August.

The Planning Board and Code Enforcement Officer Jeff Drew determined Acadia’s plans for the site at 36 Business Park Drive, formerly an animal hospital, constituted only a “minor revision,” said Town Manager Denise Ducharme.

That meant it did not require a full site plan review by the Planning Board, and the application then proceeded directly to the Select Board.

The ordinance requires the board to call two public hearings before voting on whether to issue the one-year renewable license. The board scheduled the hearings when it last met in December.

Acadia executives wrote in their application materials that the planned clinic is aimed at serving patients with opioid use disorder “with the goal of supporting long-term recovery, personal stability and reintegration into daily life.”

Acadia Application by Maine Trust For Local News

Acadia, a for-profit behavioral health care provider with headquarters in Franklin, Tennessee, runs 262 facilities across 39 states, its website states. The company runs six clinics in Maine — in Bangor, Calais, Presque Isle, Rumford, South Portland and Waterville — that are similar to what it plans to open in Madison.

Services offered at the Madison clinic would include medication-assisted treatment. A company representative said at a previous meeting that treatment would include the administration of methadone and Suboxone, a combination medication containing buprenorphine and naloxone. 

The drugs are controlled substances that are used widely to treat opioid addiction in adults. Methadone is typically administered in a daily dose.

Other services for those receiving treatment would include medical evaluations and monitoring, individual and group counseling, and education programs, according to the application.

The application says initial staffing would include one full-time registered nurse, one administrative staff member, one on-site security guard and other part-time clinical and medical staff as needed. The facility is expected to be open from 5:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily, with expected peak traffic times possible at 5:30 a.m. and 9 a.m.

Proposed security measures include controlled building access, a setup to ensure efficient patient flow, alarm systems and secure medication storage.

Acadia is subject to licenses and inspections from both state and federal authorities, including the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, according to its application.

The application materials also include Acadia’s “Good Neighbor Policy,” which all patients must sign. The policy states patients may be barred from the clinic for various infractions, such as littering, smoking in nondesignated areas, reckless driving, shoplifting at area businesses and illegal drug possession.

“The facility’s design, programming and staffing model are specifically intended to prevent disturbances, reduce neighborhood impact, and promote quiet, controlled operations,” Acadia wrote in its application. “We will work cooperatively with local law enforcement and community stakeholders to address concerns and maintain transparency.”

Acadia shifted its sights to the business park after its initial plans announced in early 2024 to open the clinic at the former Taylor’s Drug Store at 2 Old Point Ave. were met with concern from some residents and town officials. Acadia was under contract to purchase the property; town officials also considered buying the building later in 2024 but ultimately decided against pursuing the purchase after facing public scrutiny.

Those opposed to the clinic at 2 Old Point Ave. were concerned about the impacts of it being at a major intersection near schools and businesses. More than 200 residents signed a petition asking Acadia to rethink the downtown location.

At the annual town meeting in June 2024, voters, nearly unanimously, enacted a 180-day moratorium that prohibited the opening of facilities that dispense controlled substances. That gave town officials time to develop the restrictive ordinance, which was then approved in October 2024.

Under the approved ordinance, such facilities can be located only on the eastern side of the Madison Business Gateway and on the 2 1/2-mile stretch of U.S. Route 201 between White School House Road and the Skowhegan town line. On U.S. Route 201, the facility would need to be at least 500 feet from neighboring structures.

Town officials were aware Acadia was considering the business park site as an alternative when the moratorium was in place and the ordinance was developed. 

Acadia eyed Madison for its new clinic because about 250 of its Waterville clinic patients live in Somerset County and 150 live in Madison, said Adrienne Sass, Acadia’s regional director for its clinics in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, at an April 2024 Select Board meeting.

State officials also had asked for a service like Acadia’s in Somerset County, she said then.

Sass and another Acadia representative listed on the clinic’s application for the town license did not respond to inquiries Monday about when they expect the clinic would open, assuming the town issues the license.