Health council adopts recommendations for Community Health Action Center co‑location hub

The Los Alamos County Health Council voted unanimously to adopt working‑group recommendations for a Community Health Action Center, a proposed co‑located hub that would house social services and partner programs in one site to reduce referral drop‑off and improve access.

Jessica Strong, the county’s social services manager and staff liaison to the health council, presented the recommendations and the underlying data. She told the council the county had received $1,000,000 in state funds toward HVAC renovations at the Betty Earhart Senior Center and that a program specialist position has been posted to centralize outreach and training. "We received 1000000 dollars in state funds towards the HVAC renovation," Strong said during her update.

Why it matters: Staff said co‑locating key services — social services staff, domestic violence advocacy, a grocery‑style emergency food distribution, showers and laundry, charging/gathering space and workforce assistance — would reduce the number of times people must navigate separate sites and paperwork. Strong said the co‑location recommendation was already part of the county’s Comprehensive Health Plan and ranked near the top of the county ICIP list for capital projects.

Presentation highlights and planning figures: The working‑group collected site visits and community input over several months and recommended a broad set of program spaces to hand to Public Works for feasibility and design. Presentation materials included planning figures that showed $950,000 set aside in the current budget for early work (renderings) and illustrative multi‑year targets of $2,000,000 for 2027 and $8,000,000 for 2028; staff characterized those as planning targets and said additional state or federal matching funds may be sought.

Service demand and projections: Staff reported an average of about 110 client interactions per month over the last year (varying between roughly 80 and 130) with approximately 20% of contacts involving people experiencing homelessness and about 18% aged 60 or older. Strong told the council she conservatively expects those client interactions to rise by 50%–75% over the next five years, increasing strain on partners if services remain dispersed.

Public comment: Multiple community members voiced support for the recommendations. Tina Dio, a member of the county’s inclusivity task force, said the hub would help underserved residents and marginalized groups: "Our community desperately needs something like this," she said. George Martin, who described long involvement with youth and community programs, said co‑location "just makes sense" and called the approach "dignity for the people who are looking for this." Elizabeth Leaminghiner, chair of the inclusivity task force, and local service providers including the director of the Family Strengths Network and senior‑center staff also urged preserving a broad mix of services so people are not lost between agencies.

Action and next steps: Tyler moved to adopt the recommendations; Jill seconded. The council voted in favor by voice/hand and the motion passed unanimously among members present and online. Staff said the next procedural step is to hand the recommendations and the expanded program list to Public Works for site evaluation, cost‑benefit analysis and design work.

Outstanding details: Staff noted some timeline and fiscal items remain to be resolved. The presentation listed a total planning figure of $10,000,000 for the overall project; staff characterized those numbers as planning assumptions, not final appropriations. A lease question about the current social‑services space was raised during the meeting and referenced both a June 30 expiration and, in a subsequent correction, a July 30 expiration; the year was not specified in the record.

The council recorded no formal dissent during discussion. The council closed the item after the unanimous vote and moved on to remaining business.