There's a computer studio, gymnasium, art studio and comfy chairs at the Safe Visits Safe Families program at the Parental Stress Center.
The safe, child-friendly environment is also high-security. It's for the custody exchange of children between parents or caregivers who may be violent with each other.
The center held an open house yesterday to display the program, which began in January. More than 30 families each week use the program for custody exchanges.
Since the program promotes visits among children and their families in a safe environment, noncustodial and custodial parents have different entrances at the PSC Family Center on Commerce Street in East Liberty.
Security staffers search parents for weapons; a staff member then escorts the children to a separate area for the exchange. The caregivers never meet.
"It's important because we are hoping that this will help us meet a need of some of our [Allegheny County] family court clients," said Cynthia Stoltz, the court administrator. "To the extent we can keep those exchanges controlled, it'll help."
Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Max Baer attended the open house, along with Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato.
Safe Visits Safe Families is a $200,000 program funded by the Allegheny County Department of Human Services.
While courts can require Safe Visits Safe Families for custody exchanges, Timothy P. Snyder, the Parental Stress Center's executive director, said it was open to any parent concerned about family violence during custody exchanges.
The Parental Stress Center handles about 300 supervised visits a month in homes, in the community and at the center.
