Spokane City Council discussed the ongoing relocation of the Compassionate Addiction Treatment (CAT) facility at Monday’s City Council meeting; the service is currently located on 2nd and Division in Downtown Spokane.
A city press release from August 7th stated CAT intends to move to Chief Garry neighborhood near the corner of Napa and Springfield.
Councilmember Michael Cathcart called the relocation process into question noting the city did not go through a public procurement process to allocate the American rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars to CAT. This is often called a Request for Procurement (RFP).
“There was a lot of conversations around an RFP. Where is it? Where is the RFP?” Councilmember Cathcart said. “Where are the list of properties that have been looked at other than just properties in Northeast Spokane?”
The city wrote NonStop Local in an email they did not have to complete an RFP process because the allocation was reported to the Department of Treasury as “Revenue Replacement.” These are to replenish dollars lost form the pandemic, according to city spokesperson Erin Hut.
“Government services can include any service traditionally provided by a government unless otherwise specified,” Hut said. “The [City of Spokane] is compliant in using ARPA funds by following its established procurement practices and policies.”
But the process has come as a shock to people who live and work in the neighborhood. The proposed location was once a resource center for people experiencing homelessness under Jewels Helping Hands – it was in operation for 18 months. In that time, SpokAnimal Executive Director Dori Peck saw vandalism and theft increase.
“Not saying that it’s anybody’s fault, anything like that. Just that it happened,” Peck said. “We can only sustain so much in our own backyard.”
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