Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Grants Recovery Housing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Ashland County grant work to end March 31; recovery-housing funds secured
Summary
County staff told the Ashland County Health and Human Services board that a sheriff's department opioid-related grant administered with county support will end March 31, 2025, leaving a funding gap; a separate unmet-needs recovery-housing grant was awarded and will fund placements outside the county when appropriate.
Ashland County Health and Human Services was told a sheriff's department grant that the county helped administer will end March 31, 2025, and that the state must tally costs before any unspent funds can be reallocated.
The grant, which came through state-administered opioid settlement funds, was roughly $228,000 at award and had substantial unspent balances because some anticipated travel and clinic costs did not materialize, county staff said. That creates a gap from April 1 until the state reallocates leftover funds, meaning local services funded by the grant will pause unless the jail reapplies for carryover funds.
Why it matters: the county provided peer-support and in-jail coordination as part of the program; staff said the work improved connections to community services before release. Separately, the county received an "unmet needs" recovery-housing grant intended to expand housing options for people leaving custody or treatment.
County staff said the sheriff's department was the formal grantee and Ashland County Human Services provided program support in the jail, including a peer-support specialist who helped set up warm handoffs to the county's Comprehensive Community Services (CCS) program. The grant originally anticipated travel costs to obtain methadone and to transport clients for outpatient care; those transports did not occur at expected levels, leaving money unspent.
Staff reported they requested a no-cost extension but noted a likely funding gap between the grant end date and the state's reaward process. "There'd be a gap of 3 months between April 1 and July 1, where we wouldn't have any, any funding whatsoever," a county presenter said.
On the unmet-needs recovery-housing grant, staff said the award is separate from the sheriff's grant and is managed by Human Services. The county initially planned an adult family home model but shifted to a broader recovery-housing model after potential providers raised concerns about the adult family home's requirements. Staff said the recovery-housing grant allows use of any qualifying recovery housing in Wisconsin and that some placements may be out of Ashland County when that best serves a client's recovery.
Board members praised staff work and a supervisor suggested adding volunteer-based peer mentoring in future. Staff emphasized that, regardless of the grant status, they will continue outreach to coordinate prerelease connections to CCS services when possible.
Ending: Staff said decisions about reapplying for leftover funds are primarily a jail decision; county Human Services will continue to offer coordination and outreach but expects interruption in grant-funded services for the interim period.
