Damakant Jayshi
Wausau will explore a proposed pilot program for transitional housing that would serve unhoused single women, but city leaders say Marathon County and North Central Health Care should also bear the responsibility and assume a greater role.
The Wausau Police Department has been pushing for the pilot program, citing concerns over women who suffer additional challenges and are more vulnerable to abuse, including sexual assault. The department asked CW Solutions to prepare a pilot program that would address the need.
Dist. 6 Alder and Council Chair Becky McElhaney said it is the responsibility of the county and NCHC to address this pervasive challenge in the community. Upon her insistence, the two entities were specifically named in the resolution.
“Go to NCHC. I don’t care if they say ‘No’ 15 times but keep trying,” McElhaney said. “People need to hear that they are saying ‘No’.”
Alder Gary Gisselman, who is also Dist. 5 Supervisor on the Marathon County Board, said he was glad to see that the city officials were moving to address the challenge but said it was not a police function. He also suggested shifting Wausau’s Community Outreach Specialist Tracy Rieger from the police department to some kind of social services entity.
Some alders balked at the pilot program’s budget.
The first year’s estimated cost is nearly $588,000, with more than 80 percent covering program staff-related expenses. About $97,000 in funding would be used to cover rent, utilities, transportation and other costs for five clients. CW Solutions envisions a three- to five-year pilot program, meaning the total budget would vary between $1.8 million and $3 million.
The Public Health and Safety Committee approved the concept of transitional housing last month but without any explicit funding commitment from the city.
Alder Lisa Rasmussen, who chairs the Public Health and Safety Committee, said the committee did not intend to make the taxpayers pay. She said the committee wanted all alders to know more about it, but she made it clear that Public Health and Safety is recommending it without any financial commitment.
Police Chief Matthew Barnes said he and his department have been troubled by the abuses suffered by single homeless women and want to address the problem. The department is aware of the high costs and is not asking the city to foot the bill. However, before he approached the state and the federal government, he wanted to gauge interest and the support level from the council.
The resolution was amended to reflect the suggestions from McElhaney and others on the council, and calls for the program to be investigated further with more details before July. The resolution also specifies an understanding that other community partners will be engaged, particularly Marathon County and North Central Health Care.
While the amendment passed unanimously, the amended resolution was approved 101-1, with Alder Dawn Herbst voting against it.
