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The Clinton Lycoming Joinder Board approved four contracts in preparation for moving services from their current Sharwell Building location to the fourth floor of the county-owned Third Street Plaza at their monthly meeting.
Renovations to the new site are expected to be completed by May 15, which Keth Wagner, executive director at the Joinder, said would give them a little over two months to move from Sharwell and do any necessary repairs, if needed.
The contracts awarded for the fourth floor renovations were: Gray Builders for prime general construction, $1.08 million; Spencer Mechanical, Inc. for prime plumbing construction, $185,700; Dixon AC&R Corporation, for prime HVAC construction, $174,466; and G. R. Noto Electrical Construction for prime electrical construction, $431,000.
County Commissioner Scott Metzger, who serves on the Joinder Board, abstained from voting on the Dixon AC&R vote due to a conflict of interest.
The move to the Third Street Plaza was approved earlier this year by the board. The discussion to move the offices began with the Lycoming County commissioners focusing on the cost of renting the Sharwell, when there was open space at the Third Street site where other county offices will be housed after the new year. The county agencies housed at Sharwell currently pay rent of $43,000 a month.
In other business, the Joinder Board approved an administrative agreement with Julia Dyckman Andrus Memorial Inc. for sanctuary trauma informed care post certification for 10/1/23 through 3/1/26 at a cost of $12,000. The Joinder is a sanctuary trauma informed agency.
The board approved a pass through agreement with the Center for Community Resources (CCR) for a Byrne State Crisis Intervention program grant for $200,000. The grant is related to the crisis intervention training that is provided to law enforcement specifically focused on reducing violence from firearms, Wagner said.
"One of the methods that is acceptable is to develop a co-responder model where a crisis mental health worker would be embedded with law enforcement," he said.
The Joinder met with their crisis provider, CCR, and then with Lycoming Regional, and Lock Haven police to ask if they would be at all interested in this.
"We would get the grant and we would basically pass the money through the CCR. They would hire two caseworker level folks. They would train them and law enforcement would train them and then the individuals would actually work out of those two law enforcement facilities not out of the crisis and they would be available to ride along with law enforcement. They'd be available to help de-escalate situations and they'd be available if there was someone who did something while they were off duty, they can follow up on it the next day," Wagner explained.
Other agreements approved by the board included: Clinton County Community Connections Inc. for social rehab services under mental health services, $60,000; Crossroads Counseling Inc., for forensic and outpatient mental health services, $7,500; Skills of Central Pennsylvania Inc. for the provision of site based psychiatric rehabilitation services in Lock Have, $50,000; Bayada Home Health Care, Inc., for respite, companion, in-home and community support service for consumers living at home, $45,000; Clinton County Community Connections, Inc., for companion, various CPS, transportation and respite service under intellectual disabilities, $70,000; Carl Frels, certified deaf interpreter services, $3,000; Michelle K. Long, provision of hearing ASL interpreter services, $2,500; Service Access & Management, Inc., for investigative services; Heather Schmerman, provision of certified deaf interpreter services, $500; Skills of Central Pennsylvania Inc. for in-home and community support and supported employment, $5,000 and also to provide a specialized summer program for referred individuals with intellectual disabilities, $73,500.
The next board meeting will be at 9 a.m. Jan. 17 at the Sharwell Building, 200 East St.