Drug abuse treatment center on Indian Neck Road will open next month
Substance abuse treatment center Gosnold Behavioral Health is moving to Wareham from Falmouth and opening its doors starting Wednesday, July 1.
The 96-bed facility will occupy the former Forestview Nursing Home building at 50 Indian Neck Road and sits across the street from five homes. After the site's most recent occupant, Wareham Healthcare, closed in July 2021, Gosnold bought the property for its treatment center.
Gosnold, a nonprofit founded in 1972, provides services to treat mental health, substance use and “co-occurring illness.” The organization provides both outpatient and inpatient services for patients suffering with addiction and has locations across eastern Massachusetts.
When Gosnold’s plans were first made public in 2024, neighbors attended a Zoning Board of Appeals meeting with concerns about security, lighting and traffic.
During a tour of the facility last week, officials explained how Gosnold addressed the concerns of the residents surrounding the property. Gosnold Chief Operating Officer Danae Young said that the treatment center has developed a good relationship with its neighbors.
From Wareham Week’s interviews with neighbors this week, that appears to be the case.
Dez Lopes lives across the street from the Gosnold site and works in addiction services at the High Point Treatment Center in Plymouth and understands the need. She added that construction crews knocked down her mailbox earlier this year and that they quickly replaced it the following day.
Gosnold offers two levels of inpatient services. Addiction Treatment Services is a five-to-10-day detoxification program where patients are stabilized and work with a medical team to get off of the substance they were using. Crisis Stabilization Services averages 19 to 28 days and serves as the "rehabilitation" part of treatment.
Based on Falmouth experience, the site is expected to heavily use Wareham's emergency response services, potentially calling first responders an average of once every day. Gosnold CEO Richard Curcuru said that he met with the Wareham police, fire department, EMS and representatives from Tobey Hospital last week.
"They're prepared for it and they're aware of the stats," Curcuru said. "They know the volume is going to be great."
Emergency Medical Services Director Brad Allen said that Wareham EMS has been in contact with Gosnold for two years. He said that the extent to which the facility will impact services is unknown, saying that it's hard to gauge ahead of the site's opening.
"We're prepared to respond to anything that comes our way," Allen said. He added that first responders are monitoring Gosnold's current first responder need in Falmouth and will continue have regular meetings with the facility's leaders after it opens.
Leading the Tuesday, June 9 tour of the facility, Young noted how resident concerns were addressed.
The new facility will divert emergency responders to a side entrance shielding nearby homes from emergency sirens and flashing lights. There is also a high fence separating the Gosnold property the adjacent residential Forest Way.
Curcuru and Chief Clinical Officer Allie Anderson said that patients would also not be allowed to leave the facility while undergoing treatment.
"There's no passes, Curcuru said. "People don't go out in the community and everybody will be contained here."
According to Anderson, patients won't be walking the grounds outside the facility and instead have access to contained courtyard-style outdoor spaces.
Anderson called the Wareham facility a "significant upgrade" from Gosnold's current Falmouth location. The Wareham site has private bathrooms, recreation spaces, a full cafeteria and a fitness facility for patients.
"Everything is kind of newer and improved for the patients," Anderson said.
The services help fill a need in Wareham, according to Curcuru.
"We also know Wareham needs these services, so when it came time to decide a new location, we figured that the Wareham site, the Wareham town would be benefitted greatly from Gosnold services," he said.
In 2024, Wareham had 30 substance-related deaths, according to the Bureau of Substance Addiction Services. Eleven of those deaths were opioid-related.
Curcuru said that Gosnold has agreed to prioritize residents of Wareham if its facility ever has a waiting list.
"The Wareham residents will go to the top of the list," he said.
Gosnold is planning to transfer its patients from its current Falmouth location to the Indian Neck Road facility on June 30 ahead of an official opening on July 1.












