Recovery House asks Senate Institutions for $220,000 to fix roofs, add backup power and weatherize aging facilities

WALLINGFORD — Recovery House Inc., a residential substance-use treatment provider that has operated since 1972, asked the Senate Institutions committee on Feb. 5 for a $220,000 capital budget adjustment to make urgent infrastructure repairs, including slate-roof work, a generator for backup power, weatherization (siding and windows) and other structural fixes.

Chad Nijay, identified as executive director of Recovery House Inc., told the committee the organization's oldest buildings date to the late 19th century and ‘‘it's now time to invest in the infrastructure so we can continue on with another 50 years of service.’’ He said Recovery House is mostly grant- and Medicaid-funded; the organization estimates about 55% of operating revenue comes from Medicaid and that federal grants, including the federal block grant administered by SAMHSA, are a significant part of its funding mix.

The capital request, Nijay said, is intended to address immediate, high-priority items: slate roofing repairs (which he described as costly when they fail), upgrades to backup power so facilities do not rely on ad hoc residential generators during outages, weatherization to curb heating costs (attic work, new windows and siding), and some structural repairs. "My proposal is for 220,000," Nijay said when announcing the request.

Committee members asked whether Recovery House already had a line item in existing capital allocations or the BAA and whether other partners had pledged money. Nijay said the current approach is to seek committee support; he told members the Department of Health manages many of the provider's grants and confirmed Recovery House receives federal SAMHSA funding and a public inebriate-program grant in addition to state-managed outreach funding used for virtual screening.

Members pressed for operational details. Nijay estimated Recovery House serves roughly 35—95 people across its levels of care in a typical week. He said Serenity House, the program that provides medical detox/withdrawal management, recently houses 17—4 residents at a time (the license is for 34 beds) while effective operating capacity is closer to 25—6 because of workforce constraints. He gave typical maximum stays as about 60 days for the highest level of care and up to 120 days in lower-level, clinically managed residences that allow phased community access.

Nijay described a staffing squeeze that has required use of travel nurses and direct-support travelers and a shortage of clinical counselors, an issue compounded by the closure of a local graduate program that had served as a training pipeline for counselors. Committee members said those workforce and capacity details matter for assessing how capital funds would translate into service continuity.

Several members signaled preliminary support but did not take a formal vote. The committee asked Nijay to submit an itemized cost sheet and supporting quotes; members said that detail would be reviewed at the house committee and during a recovery-focused meeting next week. "I'm hearing general support," one member said, while the chair asked Nijay to provide the deeper detail by the next meeting so members could consider a funding recommendation.

No formal motion or vote on the $220,000 request was recorded during the session. The committee adjourned after setting the next step: Recovery House will provide the requested details and the committee will revisit the request at an upcoming meeting.

SOURCE NOTE: Article is based on testimony and committee discussion at the Senate Institutions committee meeting on Feb. 5, 2026.