Old MVD site could become home to recovery village for people addicted to drugs

Apr. 16—An old Motor Vehicle Division property could become the site of several sleeping shelters for people suffering from drug addiction.

The funding for the recovery housing project comes from opioid settlement dollars heading to the city of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County. The City Council voted 5-4 Monday to approve $5 million of money for site infrastructure, buying and installing the houses and contracting a service provider. Fifty individuals could be served at a time, the city's Health, Housing and Homelessness Department spokesperson Katie Simon said in an email to the Journal.

"The goal here was for us to have the opportunity to implement temporary housing that is dedicated for recovery treatment," the city of Albuquerque's Chief Administrative Officer Samantha Sengel said at the Monday meeting.

Pallet Shelter, headquartered in Washington, offers a variety of mobile shelters, including sleeping areas, bathrooms and showers and laundry facilities, that range in cost from $28,000 to $43,000 per unit.

The city identified a state-owned site off Pan American between Candelaria and Comanche NE, in the northern part of Council District 2. Simon said there would not be land acquisition costs involved in the project.

"Recovery housing is considered a best practice to help people struggling with substance use to both maintain stable housing and their sobriety," Simon said. "This allocation of the opioid settlement funding will be put to use to help those in need."

The county would put $800,000 toward buying the units. On the city side, Simon said, the department is expecting between $1.4 million and $2.15 million in capital expenses and between $1.3 million and $1.7 million in operational costs.

"Until we have an operator procured, we don't have a further breakdown," Simon said.

The Monday vote was factious, with some councilors asking whether it was appropriate to spend settlement dollars on the project and its operation — especially when a recovery service provider has not been selected. The money is intended to go to services and programs to help people suffering because of the opioid crisis.

The city expects to see up to $78 million in settlement dollars over the next 18 years. Although the sum is doled out incrementally, it's a one-time infusion of cash — once the money is used, that's it. Bernalillo County is also receiving millions in settlement dollars.

The city has received $27.8 million of the funding so far.

"If we put in projects, and we provide operating funds for those projects out of opioid funds, what happens when the opioid funds go away?" Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn said. "Then we have 50 pallet homes and no way of operating them in the future."

Some councilors also noted that the timing seemed to be at odds with mirror resolutions passed by the City Council and Bernalillo County Commission in October that established a process to decide how the settlement funding is spent. The process includes joint collaboration between the two entities, periods of public input and the development of a strategic plan for how the money would best be spent.

Fiebelkorn said that a presentation of the full city/county plan is expected this fall.

"I have a problem with putting the cart before the horse," Councilor Renee Grout said.

Simon said the city, county and consultant Vital Strategies will start the public input process on long-term opioid settlement allocations this summer and a draft plan is expected by October. For this project, Simon said, the city will soon begin outreach to neighbors now that the pallet home village has been approved by the City Council.

Councilor Joaquín Baca said waiting for fall before ordering the homes — which can take between six and nine weeks to arrive, according to city staff at the Monday meeting — could unduly delay the project.

"I want to see folks receiving treatment as soon as possible," Baca said.