2006-08-25 TPLANNING DIR. - Laserfiche WebLink

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becomes desperate, frightened, as Gary said, decompensates rather easily. It’s easy to get drugs on the street, it’s easy to fall back into despair on the street. If one has a place to come to at the end of the day, a place literally to lay one’s head, it can go a very long way towards supporting the belief that recovery and a better life are possible. I think that this change, although it seems rather small just to go from five to eight beds in a house, we’re talking then of three extra beds in a number of houses, and each one those represents an individual’s life. That person’s life might be turned around by the opportunity to be in a home rather than on the street. And I think that kind of change is part of what we all want to do in the world, to make it a more humane and welcoming place. So I would urge the Commission to consider approving this County-wide shift on behalf of all of us in recovery. Thank you for hearing me out. Appreciate it. ALAMEDA:Thank you, Sarah. Appreciate your testimony. Any other -? Commissioner Graham, for Sarah? GRAHAM:Just a piece of information, thank you for your testimony. You did mention the decision by this Commission. I just want to let you know, and everybody here, that my understanding is because it’s an amendment to the Zoning Code, the County Council will make the decision. So we’re just having a hearing today, we’ll be having a hearing in Hilo, and then we’ll make a recommendation to them; but they will make the final decision. So it’ll be awhile. HO:Thank you for that clarification. ALAMEDA:Any questions for Ms. Ho? Seeing none, thank you so much for coming. You may be seated. HO:Thank you very kindly. ALAMEDA:Ma’am? Please state your name and address for the record? MCINTOSH:Hi. I’m Marilyn McIntosh. My address is P.O. Box 2008, Kealakekua, Hawai`i. I’m the Director of Behavioral Health Services for the Big Island Substance Abuse Council. I really can’t speak on the Keaau Ag Lots; and we’re not running an adolescent program right now in the way of a residential or therapeutic living facility for adolescence. But I do want, I can comment that the report that Sarah just gave hits everything on the head that I was going to say, also. We deal with people coming in who are homeless, who have no way up unless we can help them by giving them a home to start structuring their lives again. Yes, some of these people are referred by probations, paroling authorities, Big Island Drug Court; but the homes help to give them back their lives. And with the help of such people as Probation, Big Island Drug Court, and the Paroling Authorities, we have a stronger leash on these people, to use the term that was earlier used “leash.” It’s very, very helpful. Those people out in the community that he was earlier speaking of, “high risk,” they are out in your community already. If we can get them in to EXHIBIT D 16