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Hamilton County approves $3.9 million in local "1 Ohio" recovery grants for treatment, housing and supports
Summary
The Board of County Commissioners approved contracting for $3.9 million in locally administered opioid-recovery grants to fund treatment, recovery housing, peer supports and a forensic laboratory instrument.
The Board of County Commissioners of Hamilton County voted unanimously on May 1, 2025, to approve contracting for approximately $3,900,000 in locally administered "1 Ohio" recovery funds to support treatment, recovery housing, peer support positions and forensic capacity.
Commissioners approved awards and contracts for multiple nonprofit providers and a coroner laboratory purchase during a presentation by county staff that described the local grant process, eligibility and evaluation. The board’s action covers two-year grants and local contracts that the county will execute with selected providers.
The grants will fund projects the county’s Office of Addiction Response and its review partners recommended. The county noted a large demand for funding: 31 applications requested nearly $11 million for this round, while about $3.9 million was available. The county said $1.9 million of the local allocation was pledged by the City of Cincinnati and $2.0 million came from the county’s 2025 budget.
Awarded projects announced at the meeting included: - Joseph House: a request to establish a senior peer support position to strengthen veterans’ recovery and intake services. Alicia Patterson, Executive Director of Joseph House, said the peer support role will complete intakes, develop housing plans and support veterans with complex needs including PTSD and co-occurring conditions. Former resident and operations supervisor Joey Daniel described peer support as “instilling hope” and said his lived experience helped him obtain peer certification and support others in recovery. - Serenity Recovery Network: a $240,900 award for renovations to add nine level-1 recovery housing beds, with a focus on expanding alumni and family recovery housing for women, Executive Director Allison Marchioni said. Marchioni said the program’s alumni housing has a 93% success rate for residents remaining clean and engaged in recovery supports. - LIT Movement: a $100,000 recovery-supports award for startup costs and wraparound supports, including two weeks of initial rent assistance for new residents, transportation (a van), and food, clothing and hygiene support for people leaving incarceration. Tyler Schmidt, executive director, said the funds will help an estimated 100 people and strengthen reentry connections with the justice center and courts. - First Step Home: a $500,000 two-year gap-funding award to continue residential and outpatient services for women with substance use and co-occurring disorders. CEO Morgan Gibson said the program serves roughly 385 women and about 55 children across its continuum of care and emphasized the program’s on-site childcare and workforce development. - Hamilton County Coroner’s Office laboratory: a one-time $60,000 payment to purchase an additional gas chromatograph–mass spectrometer (GCMS). Andrea Hatton, Chief Administrator, and Laura Kimble, Chief Drug Analyst, said two instruments had recently failed and the new GCMS will improve turnaround time for law enforcement rush requests and regional forensic needs.
County staff said each funded project will be evaluated by the University of Cincinnati, which will provide quarterly and biannual written reports to the board. Staff also said contracts will be executed in the coming weeks; these are two-year grants for most awardees.
A motion to approve agenda items 1 through 5 that covered these contracts passed by recorded vote. Commissioners recorded “yes” votes for Commissioner Driehaus, Commissioner Summer Adumis and Commissioner Reese.
The board and staff noted the round was oversubscribed and that funded projects target veterans, parents and youth, reentry populations, and forensic capacity to detect emerging drug threats. County staff said additional award rounds would follow in subsequent weeks for further allocations.
The board’s action directs county administration to execute contracts with the listed providers and to report progress through the county’s evaluation process.
