Two interested in same spot
Two faith-based groups have approached the Board of Supervisors about using the Marion County BusinessPlex for a drug rehabilitation center, and now supervisors are weighing their options.
Representatives from Jacob’s Well and Damascus Road visited again Monday to discuss use of facilities at the former Columbia Training School.
But at the same time, another group said it had already been promised a chance to use buildings at the BusinessPlex for the same type of transitional housing and programs.
Tango Downs, a pastor with the Springs Church, said his group had previously discussed a 24-bed facility to be called “The Path.”
“I’ve been working with my board to get things together,” he said. “We were interested in two buildings and the Board of Supervisors agreed. There are several churches in Columbia that are working with us. We’re ready for the hands-on part – let’s go; let’s start painting.”
Board President Randy Dyess said Tuesday that it’s a confusing situation.
“We gave Tango our word,” he said. “We told him it was OK to pursue. He looked at the building. We’ll have to talk about this again.”
Board Attorney Joe Shepard explained Monday supervisors could not sign a lease where the county did not receive rent.
“We would have to come up with a minimal amount for the rent,” he said. “We also have to contact our insurance and get back with you.”
Shepard said the Board will have to investigate potential rental agreements and more discussions could take place in July.
All parties acknowledged the need for treatment.
“Drugs are an epidemic in Marion County,” District 2 Supervisor Terry Broome said. “Our constituents are the ones hurt by the problem. Every family has been impacted. We would be trying to help our own constituents. It is a tremendous problem in this county and we all see the effects of it.”
Both groups offered presentations about what they’ll offer:
The Path
“We want to help those that have struggled with addiction get jobs,” Downs said. “We want to teach these people skills that will allow them to get jobs in the community. We offer the Christian men’s and women’s Job Corps groups, a financial literacy course and much more. We want to begin with a men’s transitional program. We want to be able to teach them how to be a man and raise their children.”
Participants are assigned into a nine-month to 12-month program, according to Downs.
“They sign a contract,” he said. “We have so many people chasing that high in our society, but the symptoms are bigger. There’s a bigger problem and a bigger issue; they’re not leading Christ-centered lives.”
Downs said the ministry he’s involved in works closely with the Home of Grace, a successful treatment facility.
“Everything they do is biblically correct,” he said. “Their success rate is more than 45 percent; those are unusually high number and we attribute that to Jesus Christ. We model the love of Christ. We work with them to live a good moral life. We want to apply these principals to these men and women.”
Jacob’s Well and Damascus Road
Susan Haynes-Johnson, who owns and operates the facilities along with her brother, Asa Haynes, said the program would treat active addictions with a 6-month program and then a longer residential program.
“It’s a game changer,” she said. “It adds value to their lives, and they add value to the community.”
Haynes said his group would like to eventually lease as many of the buildings as they can and even look at tearing down the former gymnasium, which was damaged during Hurricane Katrina, and put in a building to do manufacturing. He said they currently have a contract in Poplarville with a pallet company from Alabama and would like to produce something in Columbia, with working being done by people in the treatment program.
“We’ve been out to the facilities twice now,” he said. “The first time was kind of shock and awe. The second was bittersweet. We’ve got a lot of work to do. We’re interested in the homes and the buildings. If there is a building that is empty that can be utilized, we want it. Nothing is beyond repair – humanity or buildings.”
As for the decisions left to the supervisors regarding the facilities, Downs said that whatever happens will be “God’s will.” Haynes encouraged the board to think about his group’s proposal.
“You could be opening the door for other counties to mirror,” he said. “There are no hard feelings if you don’t. I feel good about the heartbeat of what’s going on.”
Pictured Above: Under a proposal from Jacob’s Well and Damascus Road, the old gymnasium from the Columbia Training School, which was heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina, would be razed and replaced with a structure to be used for manufacturing. But the Marion County Board of Supervisors has not made a decision about competing proposals from two different drug rehab organizations. | Photo by Mark Rogers
