Homeless task force to consider letter backing Attic housing program for justice-involved residents

Members of the Marathon County Homeless Task Force heard a presentation from Sean, an Attic program representative, and discussed a request that the task force sign a general letter of support to help Attic pursue grant funding for a housing program serving people with criminal-justice involvement and co-occurring substance-use or mental-health needs.

Sean said clients are typically referred “by their agents,” meaning probation or parole agents, and that Attic “does the majority of our business with the Department of Corrections and here with Marathon County.” He told the group the program ran a 2022 pilot in which “10 out of 12. So it’s at 83 percent,” measuring housing retention 12 months after move-in.

Task force members pressed on barriers the program faces. The police chief said it is “incredibly difficult to house people” in Marathon County because criminal histories and eviction records, along with tight housing supply, leave landlords able to choose lower-risk applicants. He and others urged that Attic’s grant applications include landlord-side incentives or reserve funds to mitigate perceived risk to property owners.

A task force member who formerly owned rental property, Terry, described agreeing once to rent to a client based on thorough representation from an agency and warned that landlords weigh the quality of that representation when deciding whether to rent.

Attic described its local wraparound services: Marathon County contracts with Attic to provide AODA (alcohol and other drug abuse) treatment and related case management. Sean said clients typically have a case manager and an AODA counselor on staff, are drug tested as part of reporting, and that Attic maintains “constant communication between us and the agent.”

Sean asked the group for a general letter stating the county’s and task force’s support for Attic’s efforts to seek funds. A motion “to support a letter of support for Attic services” was made and seconded during the meeting, but the chair and members agreed to place the request on the task force’s next meeting agenda for discussion and possible action. The chair asked that a draft letter be included in the next meeting packet so members can review it in advance.

Next steps: the task force will take up the letter request at its next meeting; County Board review and a separate county-level vote were described as forthcoming by staff.