Good morning. I’m live-tweeting today’s Douglas County Board of Commissioners meeting for @oma_documenters Today they’ll be discussing the proposed mental health facility
09:02 AM Apr 25, 2023 CDT
Comm Jim Cavanaugh is wearing sunglasses today, not bc he wants to look cool, but bc he’s undergoing eye surgery
The Board recognized the retirement of Ernest Black from the corrections department. Director Mike Myers said he couldn’t be where he is without Black taking on responsibilities
The Board also recognized the retirement of Prison Ministry Senior Chaplain Morris Jackson. Jackson said his 31 years with the corrections department have been the most fulfilling of his life
The Board read a resolution recognizing May as Mental Health Awareness Month.
During citizen comment, Nicole Claire from Our Omaha said she wants more information on the juvenile justice center
She said she sees similarities with the issues with the mental health facility, which will come up later in the agenda
Jaquala Yarbro said Nebraska has a race equity problem, evidenced by 44% of the Douglas County jail being Black
“Despite all the money we’re spending, numbers aren’t going down,” Yarbro said
She said money should go toward programs and services rather than new buildings
Next the Board will receive an update on the Inclusive Leadershuo Program and Mentoring 360 Program
DEI officer Marisa Hattab said county leaders are committed to developing a strong, diverse workforce
Hattab said theyve launched the inclusive leadership program with the treasury. She said before the training, 38% believed they were competent leading diverse teams. After, that number rose to 97%
Kylene Cunningham from the treasurer’s office said the training allowed them to take better care of their employees and create a safe environment
Laura Feilner said the 360 mentorship program will help people at all levels of the county
Environmental Services Director Kent Holms said the training helped him to address his own internal biases that he wasn’t aware of before
Holms said the county has employees that see things differently than the leaders, which is valuable to governing
Hattab said she wants the county commissioners and other elected officials to go through the training.
Hattab said they launched the 360 mentorship program last week with 66 mentees and 12 mentors across 17 departments
Comm Mike Friend said he looks forward to the training. He especially wants to know how he can identify his own unconscious biases
Chair Mary Ann Borgeson said it’s important for leaders to never stop learning
Jaquala Yarbro said she wants more focus put on race equity, rather than being a small part of diversity, equity and inclusion
Now CAO Patrick Bloomingdale will give an update on the county’s strategic plan
Bloomingdale said their first task for attaining a diverse workforce was to articulate the county’s core values as an employer
The county’s second priority was data. During quarter 1, they created an inventory of the reports and data services departments used and assessed their needs
The county also wants to optimize utilitization of their spaces, so some departments and offices have moved around in the city county building
The county’s final priority is to plan for the future of the 42nd street campus.
Borgeson said they plan to have regular updates on the strategic plab
Next is a resolution to move forward with relocating the community mental health center to a new facility downtown, and to connect the facility with the county jail at 17th and Jackson streets
Comm Friend said he’s not sure if moving forward will address short term care needs
Comm PJ Morgan said he wishes the resolution was in two parts. With property values declining, he said the county will have budget problems going forward. He thinks they should delay the correctional addition
Comm Cavanaugh said the county could utilize space at the current facility at 42nd street to provide long term care and partner with other providers
He said this would avoid the stigma of combining the facility with a correctional facility
Cavanaugh said there are over 100 vacant beds in the current correctional capacity that could be modified for mental health treatment for the incarcerated
He said this alternative would make 42nd Street a public health corridor, and it would be more sustainable
Cost of renovation would be a fraction of the cost of new construction, Cavanaugh said. He said there’s no need to rush on this, and they could develop other alternatives
Comm Maureen Boyle said the state needs to step up to provide long term services, bc it may not be financially tenable for the county
Boyle said the county needs to help incarcerated people with mental illness. She said the community mental health center being at that location will help reduce recidivism
Morgan wants to make a motion to separate the two parts of the resolution, if possible
He said if they approve only the corrections aspect, they could take more time with it
Morgan said he won’t vote for a mill levy increase under any circumstance
Comm Roger Garcia said the downtown location is best geographically for taking mental health issues straight on
He said his brother struggled with mental health and substance abuse before he passed two years ago. Garcia said services weren’t available to him
Garcia said he’s experienced working on mental health issues through his work at Boys Town
Tim Heller said his son has schizophrenia, so he understands how needed mental health services are.
He said there are opportunities for partnerships to expand the number of beds. He thanked Comm Cavanaugh for looking for alternative plans
Doug Kagan said Nebraska Taxpayers for Freedom opposes the proposal and that they don’t believe the county has adequately looked at alternatives
Kagan suggested cooperating with UNMC, partnering with a private institution, or working with neighboring counties on a joint facility
Pierce Carpenter said the county needs to spend as little money as possible.
Ed Forgarty said the county may violate ARPA guidelines or treasury regulations
He said there’s nothing saying that grant funds can be used for new construction
Former Omaha Mayor Hal Daub said Fogarty raised valid concerns that the county attorney needs to address
Daub said it doesn’t seem the county has adequately looked at alternatives. He thinks residents would prefer the county use existing property
He, like other testifiers, gave support to Cavanaugh’s proposed alternative
Dennis Shleiss (sp?) said the county’s best option would be a partnership with UNMC
Larry Storer referenced @ChrisMBowling ‘s stories on Omaha’s mental health systems. He said there needs to be a fuller discussion of what the county can and can’t do before spending taxpayer dollars
Nicole Claire said she feels hopeful that the Board will listen to community feedback
Claire and another testifier gave support to Cavanaugh’s alternative proposal
Jaquala Yarbro said location matters, and the county should look at services rather than a new building
That’s it for testifiers. Looks like there’s confusion about the motion to vote on
Morgan wants to make a motion to postpone the resolution two weeks
Comm Morgan said he wants the time to communicate with state senators about funding. Chair Borgeson said she doesn’t think that will be possible in that time