Results of feasibility study re. adolescent drug treatment facility available online

Mayor to select site by year’s end

News Release from County of Kauai August 9, 2013

LĪHU‘E – The results of a feasibility study on the proposed adolescent residential drug treatment and healing facility are now available online, www.kauai.gov/lifeschoiceskauai.

The study indicates that there is a need for a drug treatment and healing facility for youth on Kaua‘i, and provides some guidance for the county in its effort to site such a facility.

“This is a very important project and we have every intention of moving it forward as quickly as possible,” said Mayor Bernard Carvalho, Jr. “The feasibility study is extremely valuable in helping us to understand the need on Kaua‘i so that we can design a facility that will truly help our precious children.”

The mayor noted that he plans to select a preferred site for the facility by the end of the year.

“We appreciate the continued engagement of people throughout the island,” said the mayor. “I know that together we can make this work and be proud of the result.”

In addition to quantifying how many youth a drug treatment and healing facility might service on Kaua‘i, the feasibility study also provides recommendations on how it should operate and financial projections on various scenarios for developing the facility.

The study, which took a little more than a year to complete, was conducted by Norma Doctor Sparks and Steve Sparks with Families First Hawai'i Services, Inc., a Kōloa-based firm.

In gathering information for the study, the Sparks reviewed and analyzed data they received from state, county and private agencies. They also interviewed over 75 individuals from government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and community members.

Recently, the Sparks presented the results of the study to the mayor, individual County Council members, and at a community meeting in Līhu‘e.

For more information on the study or the county’s Life’s Choices Kaua‘i (LCK) program, please contact LCK Coordinator Theresa Koki at 808-241-4925 or by email, tkoki@kauai.gov.

During his 2010 inaugural speech, Mayor Carvalho spoke about his vision for Kaua'i in the year 2020 that includes siting a residential adolescent drug treatment and healing center.

This endeavor is one of 38 projects that are part of the mayor’s Holo Holo 2020 vision for Kaua'i, which calls for all organizations, businesses, residents and visitors on Kaua'i to be part of creating an island that is sustainable, values the native culture, has a thriving and healthy economy, cares for all – keiki to kupuna – and has a responsible and user-friendly local government.

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