Syracuse officials seek OnPoint contract extension after Project Heal abruptly ended services

Syracuse City Public Safety Committee members heard an update on the Safer Streets pilot and plans to extend OnPoint’s contract after Project Heal abruptly stopped providing therapeutic services in September 2024, leaving a multi‑month gap that reduced the program’s active caseload from an originally planned 50 people to roughly 9–13.

Director Latifah, the city official who presented the update, told the committee that “what brings us here is the abrupt interruption of contract by Project Heal,” and that City Hall moved to contract with OnPoint after the termination. She said the fully executed contract with OnPoint was completed on 2025‑01‑21 and that therapist subcontracts were signed in early February, with direct therapeutic work beginning in mid‑March.

The loss of Project Heal created a service gap that staff and contractors described as substantial. “It wasn't even a rug being ripped from underneath us. We fell off of a cliff,” said Lisa Evans, who identified herself in the meeting as the grama manager in the mayor’s office assigned to reduce gun violence, describing the period between Project Heal’s September contract expiration and OnPoint’s operational start.

Why the program served far fewer people than planned

Dr. Anita Wright, the program’s clinical lead, reported that “we have right now 9 out of the 13 young men, seeing counselors, therapists,” and said two additional clients were in the Justice Center and two remain missing with active warrants. Staff explained that the planned caseload of 50 assumed multiple outreach workers plus five therapists; with staff reductions and the six‑month interruption, the active caseload fell sharply.

City staff and contractors described several obstacles that limited enrollment: organizations that won contracts through the city’s RFP process often lacked the hiring capacity or specialized training required to engage and retain high‑risk adults aged roughly 19–23; client contact information frequently changed; and some outreach strategies initially relied on cold calling individuals who were not on supervision, which proved ineffective. Dr. Wright said clients were sometimes skeptical of therapy at intake and that having therapists who matched clients’ backgrounds helped engagement.

Training, capacity building and selection criteria

Multiple speakers said the city will change how it contracts for community‑based intervention work. Director Latifah and others told the committee the city will require better evidence of training and capacity from contractors before awarding future contracts and will support capacity building and training programs. “You can't just take a guy, well, I did 20 years in prison, I'm ready to work. No. You need to go through some training,” Latifah said, describing plans to certify credible messengers and outreach staff.

Probation, Syracuse Police Department and other partners remain involved. Staff said they meet regularly with probation and SPD to identify clients already under supervision (probation/parole), who are more likely to engage with therapy; those supervised participants produced the program’s most sustained successes.

Next steps, funding and continuity

Committee members were told staff will pursue extending OnPoint’s contract through September (staff described seeking an extension to at least September 2025) and will explore billing therapy to insurance for longer‑term continuity. The city plans to continue three part‑time city outreach workers funded through the city budget and reimbursement streams, and to look for grants and other funding to sustain services while OnPoint and partner agencies scale up.

Staff also described operational steps already taken: City staff said OnPoint and other contractors have received training support from Project RISE and other partners, the coalition meets twice monthly with county, state and federal partners, and the outreach component funded by the DOJ will continue separately through at least September 2026 depending on funding.

Committee members asked staff to codify the current status and next steps by email to committee members and to continue biweekly coordination with probation and SPD to increase enrollment among supervised individuals. Several council members suggested starting smaller with highly trained contractors and building a certified training academy for credible messengers and outreach staff before expanding enrollment targets.

What the meeting did not decide

The committee meeting recorded discussion, questions and direction to staff but did not record any formal vote on contracting or funding changes. Staff described past council action (a council transfer adopted on 2024‑11‑12 to reallocate funds) that enabled the OnPoint contract; the committee discussion focused on implementation, capacity and requests for staff to seek extensions and funding.

Ending

City officials said they will return to the committee with written updates, training plans and any proposed contract extensions; meanwhile outreach and supervised referrals will continue on a limited basis while the city pursues funding and capacity improvements.