First New Year's Eve could be interesting for Houston's new sobering center

Director of the Houston Center for Sobriety Leonard Kincaid stands in the men's facility as he gives a tour of the new "sobering center" which is owned and operated by the Houston Recovery Center, Thursday, March 7, 2013, in Houston. less Director of the Houston Center for Sobriety Leonard Kincaid stands in the men's facility as he gives a tour of the new "sobering center" which is owned and operated by the Houston Recovery Center, Thursday, ... more Photo: Karen Warren, Houston Chronicle Photo: Karen Warren, Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 12 Caption Close First New Year's Eve could be interesting for Houston's new sobering center 1 / 12 Back to Gallery

The Houston Center for Sobriety is preparing for its first New Year's Eve in business.

It opened last April just a few blocks north of Minute Maid Park on the edge of downtown and gives people that the Houston police find under the influence of alcohol or drugs a place to sober up without getting arrested or ticketed.

Leonard Kincaid, the director of operations for the center, has overseen the facility's first year. He says tonight they will be staffing a little more than usual just in case they have an influx of patients. Since it is their first year, they don't quite know to expect and are only adding three or four extra bodies to the mix.



"We're staffing up for the third 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift," Kincaid said. "We still don't know what to expect."



Kincaid said that during the week they see more homeless individuals coming through their doors and on the weekends it's intoxicated folks from the downtown area and neighborhoods nearby. With the influx of bars downtown off Main, Kincaid wouldn't be surprised if his center gets busy.



"We expect a different crowd than usual," he laughs. He said that the holidays were fairly slow for the sobering center. He heard from Houston police that there was a drop in public intoxication calls. The chilly weather could be to blame for that, he says.

Drunk drivers, of course, don’t get to come to the Houston Center for Sobriety, and neither do those that are combative. They go to real jail.



Kincaid adds that there will be no complimentary post-midnight brunch buffet or non-alcoholic champagne toast.