Anchorage to pilot 24 micro‑unit 'recovery residences' with opioid‑settlement funds

Anchorage municipal staff told the Assembly Housing and Homelessness Committee on May 21 that the city plans a two‑year pilot to develop 24 single‑occupancy micro units to operate as recovery residences for people experiencing homelessness and substance use disorder.

"We want to pilot this over a two‑year period. We want to do 24 units, use the recovery residence model, and try it out for two years starting this fall," said Thea Agnew Bemben, Special Assistant to Mayor LaFrance, who presented the project overview to the committee.

The project pairs small, quick‑to‑install housing units (roughly 80–100 square feet each) with a program model that requires resident participation in recovery services. Staff said clinical and peer support services provided at the site are billable to Medicaid and other payors, and that the pilot includes start‑up funding to test whether operating revenue can sustain services after launch.

Why it matters: committee members were shown a budget plan and a near‑term schedule because the administration plans to request Assembly authorization to use opioid settlement funds. Staff said $500,000 would fund procurement and start‑up for a recovery‑service operator and that approximately $1.2 million would be requested to ACDA (Anchorage Community Development Authority) to run an RFP for unit construction and site development. The health department reported about $2.4 million currently held in the local opioid settlement account.

Details and timeline

Staff said the units would be single‑occupancy, year‑round habitable structures with access to shared toilets, showers, laundry and a common building for office and group activities. A fenced site with outdoor gathering space, pet accommodations and vehicle storage/parking is part of the proposed design. Presenters noted the In Our Backyard project as a local precedent and cited operating examples in Wasilla and Fairbanks run by True North Recovery.

Staff described construction and development options including on‑site assembly, off‑site manufacture and shipping‑container conversions. Capital cost targets presented to the committee were roughly $47,000–$50,000 per unit (total capital and site work) with about $20,000 estimated for each micro unit itself; staff said these figures include the toilet/shower block, fencing, utility connections and contingency and that exact costs will be finalized through the RFP process.

The administration seeks to use Anchorage Community Development Authority (ACDA) to issue the construction/site RFP and to procure a separate operator—contracted and overseen by the Anchorage Health Department—to run the recovery residence program. Staff said one model for sustainability is billing clinical and peer support services to Medicaid.

Site selection and community engagement

Staff identified a municipal parcel near Tozier Track (land currently right‑of‑way and owned by HLB) as the most promising site under consideration but said the location was not finalized. "That seems to be our most promising spot, but we don't have that nailed down yet," the presenter said.

Assembly members pressed for early community engagement. Assembly Member Ruben (district reference) asked for town‑hall style outreach because Tozier Track is in his district and neighbors have experienced encampment pressures. Staff agreed to hold community meetings once a site is determined.

Program model and operations

Staff emphasized this pilot would operate as programmatic recovery residences, not simply housing. They said operators would enforce program rules and that residents would be expected to engage with services; failure to comply could jeopardize continued residency under the program model rather than traditional tenancy rules. The presenter said True North Recovery operates similar programs in the Mat‑Su Valley and Fairbanks and that typical participant stays in comparable recovery programs are six to nine months.

Funding and next steps

Staff said the June 10 Assembly packet will include a request to appropriate $500,000 for operator procurement and roughly $1.2 million to ACDA for unit purchase/construction and site development, funded from the municipal opioid settlement proceeds. The administration plans to issue an RFP for construction and site development in June, select contractors by July, do site work in August–September and be ready to occupy in October if timelines hold.

No formal Assembly action occurred at the May 21 committee meeting; staff said formal appropriation and any contract awards will come before the Assembly for approval in June or thereafter.

Questions and concerns raised

Committee members asked about long‑term ownership, major‑maintenance responsibility and whether the muni would retain the units after the pilot. Staff said ACDA would develop the site and manage property during the pilot and the recovery‑service operator would be a separately procured contractor. After two years the municipality could extend, relocate, sell the units or repurpose the funding.

Assembly members and several public commenters asked for early, structured community engagement and for clarity on how the project would connect to other long‑range redevelopment plans for the Tozier/Tudor‑Elmore area. Staff agreed to schedule community outreach once site feasibility is confirmed.

What’s next

The Assembly will receive a formal appropriation request in the June meeting packet. Staff said they will include a checklist summary of the application and procurement package for Assembly review and will outline planned community engagement steps once a site is identified.