Casey Odell, a representative of Regard Recovery Centers, was in Wrangell last week and met with the borough manager, economic development director and parks and recreation director to discuss the Florida-based company's interest in converting the former hospital into a substance abuse treatment center.
A representative for a substance abuse recovery business that is exploring purchasing the former hospital visited Wrangell last week, learning from borough department heads how the community's services and facilities might fit the needs of the for-profit inpatient and outpatient treatment center.
Casey Odell, who used to live and work in Wrangell as a therapist and health counselor for Alaska Island Community Services in 2013, was in town Nov. 16-18. She has other work that limited her time here. "I'm a therapist. I still have private patients that I see," Odell said.
The plan initially was to try to bring along some of her colleagues from Florida-based Regard Recovery Centers, but it ended up being a solo trip this close to Thanksgiving.
Odell met with borough officials, community members and toured the facility.
Odell said she spoke with Jeff Good, interim borough manager; Amber Al-Haddad, capital facilities director; Carol Rushmore, economic development director; and Kate Thomas, parks and recreation director.
"I'm just trying to connect with the folks that have businesses, operations, interests in the surrounding area. Parks and recreation does a lot of collaboration with health care here in Wrangell," Odell said. "They're very in tune with what's going on in the community. It's just a very valuable resource."
She added, "The intention of this project in general is to be collaborative with the community. What that could potentially look like, I don't know. I'm exploring those conversations. That's really the objective of this trip."
Thomas said her conversation with Odell centered on two things: Making use of the site's proximity to Volunteer Park to supplement client treatment plans, and the potential to recruit and train the workers the company would need from Wrangell, similar to SEARHC's locally grown certified nursing assistant training program.
"Most of the time, folks have to leave Wrangell to get skilled experience," Thomas said, be it certifications, internships or apprenticeships.
Thomas said it would be helpful for residents to have training and job opportunities within their own community.
As for client access to outdoor recreation, Thomas said it's becoming more and more common for care providers to prescribe physical activity for physical ailments and disease, and parks and recreation welcomes all members of the community to use its trails and parks, the closest one to the former hospital being Volunteer Park.
"It's wise for (Regard Recovery Centers) to keep our services on the horizon for folks who might be prepared for an outpatient treatment plan," Thomas said. "I don't know what an inpatient treatment plan would look like, and the liberties of that program, but if they were able to move more freely outside of the building, our services would be able to be utilized."
Meanwhile, Odell said determining the company's potential monetary investment in Wrangell is still in the exploratory stages.
As for what the company expected from her brief visit: "What will it take on the front end for us to get from where we are today to being able to serve our first client? Those are all questions that we have to find the answers to," Odell said.
There's a lot of potential with this project, she said. Creating new jobs and a new industry, and putting the empty hospital building to good use. "But also there's a great need in the community for this type of service, not just in Wrangell, but all of Southeast and Alaska."
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