The St. Clair County Community Mental Health (CMH) Board of Directors has made the decision to close the Sail In Café and Convenience Store in downtown Port Huron. Located at 722 McMorran Boulevard, adjacent to the Blue Water Bus Depot Station, the Sail In opened in July 2016 as an extension of CMH’s existing Galley program. The convenience store served as a training site for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and/or mental illness who wanted to gain employment skills in the foodservice and retail service industries.
According to a recent press release, the decision to close this location was made by the Board after much sincere thought and consideration. Citing limited resources to provide vitally needed training to individuals the agency serves, the decision was made that training at the original Galley location at CMH’s Port Huron headquarters will prove to be more cost-effective, expanding the number of individuals to whom the agency can provide training.
Deb Johnson, Executive Director of St. Clair County Community Mental Health, said individuals who currently participate in the work program at the Sail In will have access to other similar programs.
At this time, there are no current plans to fill the space the Sail In will be vacating. It is owned by Blue Water Area Transit. The last day of operation for the cafe will be March 27.
Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.
