Rockland opioid funds panel hears four grant proposals before November vote

The Opioid Settlement Participatory Budgeting Committee held a panel discussion on four proposals competing for about $31,500 in opioid settlement funds. Residents will vote yes or no on each proposal on November 3, with absentee ballots going out soon. The four applicants are the Emergency Warming Center, Midcoast Recovery Coalition, Metro Treatment of Maine (New Season), and Homeworthy.

Key points

• The committee changed this year's format from a competitive vote to an up or down vote on each of the four proposals, with voters deciding yes or no on each.
• Jessica Bergelin of the Emergency Warming Center requested $7,500 to help open 68 consecutive nights this winter and train staff and community members in overdose response.
• Laura of Midcoast Recovery Coalition requested $11,400 for a year of scholarship funding for a recovery bed and $3,000 for an in-house counselor.
• Michelle Carey of Metro Treatment of Maine (New Season) requested $5,000 for about 166 lockboxes for take-home medication doses.
• Shannon Scheimer of Homeworthy requested $7,200, half of the annual case manager stipend, to support transportation for clients in recovery.
• Speakers from multiple organizations voiced support for one another's proposals, describing overlapping work and referring to clients moving between programs.

Next steps

• Absentee ballots are about to go out, and residents will vote on the four proposals on November 3.
• If a proposal is not funded, the money returns to the account and rolls over to next year's process.

Read the full transcript