Public Comments Ignite The Council

The City Council meeting began with  public comment from residents: Claire urged the city to use the opioid funds as intended and not to pay for a slaried position f=to aid homeless even as both may be intricately tied together.

The city out out information this wek about the use of opioid funds:

HOLYOKE — The city’s Office for Community Development is holding two community forums on Monday, September 8, to get the public’s thoughts on how to use money from opioid lawsuit settlements. This is the community’s opportunity to share what residents think Holyoke needs most when it comes to opioid use.

The city is seeking community feedback on how to spend money from opioid lawsuits, to complete a community needs assessment and to learn about community needs and priorities related to opioid use.

Members of the public, especially those affected by opioid use in any way — whether currently using, in recovery, or having lost a loved one — are encouraged to attend one or both of these interactive, drop-in sessions where residents can provide input about community needs and priorities related to opioid use in Holyoke. There will be no formal program.

The first session will be held Monday, September 8, from 12:30 pm – 2:00 pm at the Holyoke Public Library, Community Room (250 Chestnut Street). The second will be held Monday, September 8, 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm at the Council on Aging cafeteria (291 Pine Street).

Spanish interpretation will be available at both sessions. Both locations are ADA accessible and on PVTA bus routes. PVTA bus access is free.

There will be snacks and door prizes.

For more info, call 413-322-5610, email zoellera@holyoke.org, or check out www.holyoke.org/opioid-response.

Also, Rick Purcell, who is a candidate for Ward 4, currently represented by Council Koycane Givner accused a councilor of misstating information about when pubic comment was integrated into the City Council meetings, That accusation resulted in raised voices by several councilor including President Tessa Murphy Romboletti, who repeatedly tried to temper the flares.

For the record, according to Brenna Leary, the City Clerk, then-City Councilor Aaron Vega introduced the motion on Fe. 15, 2011. It was passed by voice vote unanimously.

Also, Sean Sheedy, Building Maintenance Supervisor for the Schools, asked councilors to support their request for funds to fix the roofs of the Holyoke High School, Kelly and McMahon schools.

Another speaker was Nadia Chesler, who said, in part: “I’m here today to talk about the opioid settlement funds. I am a child of loss, and I’ve been working in the field of human services for eight years as a social worker, addiction researcher and harm reduction advocate, currently at a hospital and a drop in center for unhoused people. e lost a community member to overdose this weekend. They found him in a park, unresponsive, likely dead for nearly two hours. He wasn’t behind a bush. He was in the middle of the path in plain sight. This man didn’t die because of an overdose. He died because he was alone and there was no one there to revive him.hen I heard the news, the second thing I thought was, at least he won’t be cold outside this winter. This is what the War on drugs does to people. It isolates them, denies them services including shelter and lifesaving medications like Narcan, strips them of every ounce of humanity you could imagine. People are going to use drugs whether you like it or not.
“Homeless people are going to exist. Whether you like it or not. You either view these individuals as deserving of love, dignity, and respect, or you don’t. Nobody gets a pat on the back for supporting encampment sweeps or denying our most vulnerable community members tents. That’s heartless. I hope where these funds go truly reflects the needs and demands of the people most affected by this crisis. I am horrified by the idea that it will come down to one person’s final decision. Someone who, based on a previous meeting, indicated he was not willing to speak with people directly about how these funds will work and where they’d like to see them go. This model does not reflect what many of our surrounding surrounding communities are doing.”

As stated above, there will be two open meeting for the public to weigh in on how the opioids funds can be used.

The opioid crisis has claimed millions of live. Th ease with which one can go from using the medicine for pain quickly because an addiction.

Q quick summary from Goggle search returns this information:

• Thousands of lawsuits were filed by cities, counties, and states against pharmaceutical manufacturers, distributors, and pharmacies. The lawsuits alleged that these companies contributed to the opioid crisis through deceptive marketing and irresponsible practices.
• National agreements: The resulting national settlements, including a $26 billion deal in 2021, established a framework for distributing billions of dollars over many years. The agreements allocated funds to both state and local governments to compensate them for the crisis’s toll. 

The agenda and documents pertaining to this meeting are here.

Next week’s public meetings: