Bangor recovery centers urge council members to spend ARPA funds
FILE — After receiving $20 million in funds from the American Rescue Plan Act last year, Bangor City Council members are still debating about where to allocate the money.
City councilors have acknowledged the drug addiction crisis is getting worse and worse.
So far, discussions have centered around purchasing more detox beds. But Wellspring executive director Suzanne Farley points to another area of need.
“Right now what we need in Bangor for sure are some relief for affordable housing. Safety and affordable housing for people to afford is where the money should be targeted. While I think detox beds are a need in the state of Maine, our records show we’re meeting the needs right now,” said Farley.
Bangor-based recovery centers are pushing for a multi-pronged approach to help solve the issue.
“We talked about a three-fold investment. One is in housing, two is in mental health and three is in substance abuse recovery. That’s what we’ve been asking for a year and a half, asking the city to make that kind of investment,” said Sean Faircloth, executive director of the Together Place Peer Run Recovery Center
And with Bangor being one of six municipalities that received funding from Congress, Farley believes the funds are a golden opportunity to address the issue.
“I would love to see a residential program that’s the next level of care up for those folks who don’t qualify for outpatient and it’s only 30 to 45 days. We don’t have available treatment for the next level of care after they detox,” said Farley.
However, with other issues such as providing more service to the elderly , infrastructure and even making Bangor more modern, City Councilor Gretchen Schaefer says that the funds should benefit everyone.
“I think we should make sure that we are using this money to impact all residents so that we are not leaving out children or senior citizens. I know there is a great need for housing and homelessness services but I want to make sure that we are thinking of all of our population,” said Schaefer.
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