Anchorage Health Department outlines Golden Lion renovations, RFP and transitional‑housing plan

Kimberly Rasch of the Anchorage Health Department briefed the Assembly on planned renovations and a forthcoming request for proposals for treatment services at the municipally owned facility formerly known as the Golden Lion.

Rasch said maintenance and operations began exterior ADA improvements on Aug. 5 and expected them to finish Aug. 20, weather permitting. Renovation documents for the facility at "1000 East 30 Sixth Avenue" have been submitted for permit review; the department said work will include Second Floor renovations to create treatment rooms and offices, upgraded restrooms and new HVAC and an addressable fire alarm system.

At present, the department said, Henning Inc. holds a lease to operate transitional housing at the location; the lease began Aug. 24, 2023, is month‑to‑month, and the facility currently has 84 units, zero vacancies and a roughly six‑month wait list. Henning charges a $250 deposit and $800 monthly rent and provides on‑site laundry and 24‑hour security under the lease terms, Rasch said. She noted that individuals who apply for residency must meet one or more federal homelessness definitions cited in the meeting (42 USCA 11302 as spoken in the transcript).

Rasch said the department will issue an RFP in the next couple of weeks to select a community behavioral health provider to operate outpatient substance use disorder treatment and recovery services at the municipal facility and at other municipally funded locations. The selected provider would partner with municipal outreach and mobile teams — including the Anchorage Police Department HOPE team, the fire department mobile crisis team, the Anchorage Safety Patrol and the AHD mobile clinic — and would operate recovery residences in micro units being developed by the Anchorage Community Development Authority.

Rasch told the Assembly the planned model is to continue using the current rooms as transitional housing while layering on outpatient treatment at the renovated Second Floor; she said the existing plan does not convert the building into residential inpatient treatment, though the department said that possibility could be discussed in the future depending on contractual choices and needs. Rasch estimated renovation work would take roughly six to eight months and said M&O expects to forward a recommendation of award to the Assembly at the Sept. 23 or Oct. 7 meeting to meet settlement timeline requirements tied to the $15,000,000 allocation described in prior municipal actions.

During questions, Assembly members pressed whether residents would be displaced during renovation; Rasch and M&O staff said there would be no displacement. Committee members also asked whether the provider selected would serve multiple municipal locations; Rasch said the RFP envisions broader service delivery across municipally operated facilities and outreach programs. Rasch said the RFP posting period would run four to six weeks, followed by a selection committee review of about three weeks; she said the department hopes to present a recommendation by the end of the year.

No formal vote was recorded on the presentation; Rasch said the department will return with procurement documents and an award recommendation to the Assembly.