Opioid settlement fund committee focusing on transitional housing for people in recovery

Terrie Morgan-Besecker, The Times-Tribune, Scranton, Pa.
·2 min read

Aug. 8—SCRANTON — The committee considering how to spend Lackawanna County's share of the national opioid settlement plans to use initial funding to address housing instability, which members say remains a major obstacle for people seeking treatment.

Initial plans called for the county to convert the former Dr. Peter M. Mensky Vocational-Technical School in Mayfield into a transitional housing unit that would also provide substance abuse and mental health treatment to people in recovery, who would live on site for six to 12 months.

The committee is now looking at alternate sites, including vacant buildings at Clarks Summit State Hospital, after determining the Mensky building is not financially feasible, member William Browning, director of the county's Department of Human Services, said following the committee's meeting Tuesday.

Formed in March, the Opioid Settlement Fund Committee is tasked with deciding how best to spend $9.7 million the county will receive over the next 18 years from a settlement reached with manufacturers and distributors of opioid-based drugs. The county also expects to receive an additional $7.9 million from a separate settlement with three pharmacy chains and two additional manufacturers.

The county thus far has received $1.8 million of the funds. Committee members said the initial focus is on creating transitional housing to assist people in recovery.

"If you are in recovery and doing what you need to do but you don't have a place to live ... the odds are your focus is not going to be on your recovery," said Lackawanna County Judge Michael Barrasse, one of the 11 committee members

Browning said he hoped to use some funding his department received from the state to pay for part of the renovations to the Mensky building. The state initially approved the funding, but it was disapproved when he received his final budget.

He said the owner of the building is working on obtaining federal funding that would offset the cost, but it's not yet in place.

"We need to move forward with these projects," Browning said. "If the funding is there ... we'll explore that at the time."

Barrasse emphasized that the plans remain preliminary. He and other members are researching buildings that may be available. The public will have input before any final decision is made, he said.

"We have some specific places in mind that we have to visit," Barrasse said. "Once we have a plan in place we'll put it up for public comment before we do anything."

Contact the writer: tbesecker@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9137; @tmbeseckerTT on Twitter.