Mental Health and Homeless Funding: County officials are looking to add mental health and homeless services initiatives to their upcoming law enforcement ballot measure – they call the plan the Justice System Improvement Project (JSIP).
Proponents believe more voters will be disposed to the spending proposal if it’s mixed with social services. So, naturally, the amount of funding for the added services has been a conversation.
“Staff has recommended adding $4 million to the proposed total bond amount for a total of $108.7 million, this does not include an additional proposal for homelessness services,” said Kurth at the Dec. 6 Benton County Commissioners meeting.
He noted that purchasing land for the homelessness facility, projected at $1-1.5 million, would cost less than a facility, projected at $12-15 million. Up to $3 million was the estimate given by staff based on 20-25% matching amounts.
“If the Board authorizes up to $3 million for homelessness services facilities, the County may decide before bond measure filing to buy land, in which case the County will not need the up to $3 million,” said Kurth. “The bond measure does not specify funding allocation and the County is not required to issue all the bonds that were described. The measure language will say ‘may include’.”
Later, at their Dec. 20 meeting, the Commissioners approved expanding mental health and homelessness services facilities for approximately $4.5 million, with approximately $1.5 million allocated to the expansion/relocation of the Benton County Children and Family Program and $1.5 to $3 million for the homelessness and housing services navigation center.
JSIP Bond: With that decision, the Benton County Board of Commissioners narrowed down five proposed JSIP bond amounts and funding options to only two. Project Manager Nick Kurth will once again go before the commissioners at the Jan 3 meeting to narrow that down to one.
The first option funds all proposed JSIP bond facilities fully for approximately a $114 million bond. The second option uses a combination of proposed legislative-funding and bond measure proceeds to meet bond measure needs, at a cost of approximately $109 million or less.
With the current JSIP bond measure of approximately $109 to $114 million, owners of residential units with an assessed value of $266,000, the average in Benton County, would pay roughly $150 to $160 annually, depending on the final bond amount.
Whatever is decided, this spending proposal goes before voters on their May 2023 ballot.
SOP: The Corvallis City Council will have another opportunity to go over the Strategic Operational Plan (SOP) before its final adoption at the Feb. 5, council meeting. The council will hold a work session on Jan. 5 to go over the draft proposal.
Council members were asked to bring proposed edits, changes and questions on the draft SOP that was presented to them on Nov. 17 and Dec. 8.
The SOP is the starting point for the city’s annual budget designed to serve as companion to the newly adopted community vision, Imagine Corvallis 2040.
The public is asked to provide input on the current draft by completing the online public form here.
By: Jennifer Williams
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