A public hearing will be held today by the state Department of Public Health Office of Health Care Access to hear comments on the proposal by Birch Hill Recovery Center, LLC to reopen the former property known as The Kent as a drug and alcohol rehab facility.

Public comments will be accepted from 10am to 6pm at 19 Main Street in New Milford.

Plans call for an 85-bed inpatient detoxification and intensive treatment facility offering Medication Assisted Treatment, but not IVs. It could transition to a Level 4 facility, with IV treatment, in a year. The Certificate of Need filing with the state says this would be a more affordable alternative to acute care hospitalization.

The property includes a 60,000-square-foot former skilled nursing facility on 11.5 acres off Maple Street.