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Supervisors weigh options for Cottonwood complex as crisis-center funding shifts
Summary
County supervisors discussed issuing an RFP, relocating offices, or selling the Cottonwood complex after the crisis center tenant scaled back services amid ASO funding changes. Staff will contact the provider (referred to as Optima/Optimate) to clarify funding and regulatory requirements before deciding next steps.
Des Moines County supervisors held an extended work-session discussion about the future of the Cottonwood complex, a county-owned facility that has housed a crisis center and county administrative offices. Board members said options under consideration include issuing an RFP for transitional apartments or a crisis center, moving county offices into the building, or placing the property back on the tax rolls if it is no longer needed.
Staff described recent changes in the administrative-services-organization (ASO) contracts that altered Medicaid-funded transitional services and the availability of 'empty bed days' that had supported the crisis center’s financial model. A staff speaker said drop-in centers are funded through Dec. 31 under current arrangements but that DHS/ASO rules adopted after Jan. 1 impose additional peer-support requirements that may affect continued funding. The board asked staff to contact the provider (referred to in the meeting as Optima/Optimate) to clarify whether funding will continue and what new service requirements would mean for the site.
Board members also discussed a small inventory issue: couches and other donated furnishings that the former tenant said they paid for and requested to reclaim. Supervisors agreed to allow the tenant to reclaim items the tenant paid for if the county will not reuse them.
The board directed staff to gather clear information from the provider and report back so supervisors can decide whether to pursue an RFP, repurpose county offices, or take other steps with the property.
