Ed. — From the Sunday, Oct. 17, print edition.
THE INDEPENDENT NEWS
COURTHOUSE — The City Council on Tuesday, Oct. 5, approved providing $200,000 to the Hampton Roads Workforce Council to help private and nonprofit mental health providers hire and retain needed workers.
Demand for personnel has grown during the pandemic, and City Councilmember Michael Berlucchi, who proposed the funding, said the step is a piece of the larger efforts the city must undertake to address mental health services. It will help private and nonprofit providers address critical staff shortages, he said.
“Often the first step in acquiring the help they need and the services they need is through a private practice or through a nonprofit provider,” said Berlucchi, who represents the Rose Hall District, prior to the vote. “That’s how they reach out to get the vital services they need when they’re not in crisis. That’s how we connect people with the services they need so they can avoid finding themselves in crisis.”
During an informal session on the day of the vote, there was discussion about deferring the matter. City Councilmember Barbara Henley, who represents the Princess Anne District, said she was glad for attention on the issue.
However, she said she has sought to delay considering the allocation until after a briefing on the city workforce that was scheduled for the following week.
Henley said she believed the city’s approach should be “holistic and it shouldn’t just be confined to one area,” though she voted in support of the grant program.
The resolution passed unanimously, 10-0.
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