Otero County submits mental health grant for sheriff's office, facilities grant for courthouse

Otero County has submitted two grants to the state that await approval, said Mollie Brown of the Commissioner's Office at the Nov. 2Board of County Commissioners public meeting.

One grant was submitted to the Peace Officers Mental Health Support Grant Program on behalf of the sheriff's office while another was submitted to the Underfunded Courthouse Facility Commission.

The Peace Officers Mental Health Support Grant Program is offered through the Colorado Department of Local Affairs. According to DOLA, the program exists to provide financial support to law enforcement agencies for mental health services such as:

"On-scene response services to support peace officers' handling of persons with mental health disorders; and Counseling services to peace officers; Assistance for development and implementation of polices to support peace officers who are involved in shootings or a fatal use of force; Training and education programs that teach the symptoms of job-related mental trauma and how to prevent and treat such trauma; Peer support programs."

Brown and Undersheriff Matthew Wallace worked on the grant application together, she said.

"He asked for $7,800 in funds to pay for 10 Telehealth sessions which would be over zoom or phone," said Brown. " ... 1.5 days of in-person wellness checks and one year of an ongoing peer support group for the Otero County Sheriff's Department. The application was accepted for review without issue and we should be receiving a response."

Brown said two separate entities would provide the counseling should the grant request be accepted.

The second grant request the county submitted was to the Underfunded Courthouse Facility Commission, on which 16th Judicial District Judge Mark MacDonnell also serves as the commission chair. The Underfunded Courthouse Facility Commission provides funding for supplemental grant funds to counties for assistance with courthouse facility projects.

The request was for a 50% matching grant for a total of $151,273. The funds, if granted, would assist Otero County with the partial remodeling of the west side of Otero County Courthouse, Brown said.

"It is a partial remodel of the west side of the courthouse and the creation of a single entry atrium. And again, this was accepted for review without any issue," said Brown.

The county has been searching for a way to address numerous longstanding infrastructure issues with the courthouse as well as the sheriff's office jail.

The county was primed to pitch a Justice Center Master Plan ballot initiative, which if passed by voters would have funded an overhaul and the consolidation of some courthouse facilities in addition to the county jail, but the COVID-19 pandemic prompted the county to hold out on pursuing that project to avoid undue burden and stress on county employees and residents.

Tribune-Democrat reporter Christian Burney can be reached by email at cburney@ljtdmail.com. Help support local journalism by subscribing to the La Junta Tribune-Democrat at lajuntatribunedemocrat.com/subscribenow.

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