MEETING HELD ON PROPOSED RESIDENTIAL TREATMENT FACILITY
Randall Bryant, who is building the new Residential Treatment Facility near Brenham and Rachel Blankenburg, the designated Director of the facility, answered questions during a 2 hour informational meeting Wednesday morning. Among the 21 people attending the meeting were representatives from Washington County, the City of Brenham, The Brenham State Supported Living Center, the Brenham School District, Faith Mission, and State Senator Lois Kolkhorst.
Bryant started out by describing the facility and the Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI) program they plan on using. He said the facility will most resemble the Krause Residential Center in Katy. He said that while he worked at both the Five Oaks Achievement Center in New Ulm and Prairie Harbor facility in Wallis, he saw many things that he would do differently in Brenham. Bryant said that the Brenham facility will be a secure and safe place and they will screen the teenagers before accepting them, so they only have those wanting to be here.
Brenham Superintendent Walter Jackson asked that if they are licensed, how many teachers would be required. Bryant said they would need 3 BISD teachers if they reach the 32 student maximum. He said the students would be taught in a classroom on the facility. Jackson said that BISD currently is responsible for 4,980 students, and 641 of those are special education students, well above the state average. He said that BISD is committed to teaching children, but that adding 32 students that would only be in the District for 3 to 6 months, would be a challenge.
State Senator Lois Kolkhorst said that placing a Residential Treatment Facility in a rural area places a burden not only on the school district, but also on the community as the talent to run the facility and the required payroll may not be available. Randall said they would be drawing professional staff from a large area, and not trying to attract staff from the Brenham State Supported Living Center.
Washington County Sheriff Otto Hanak talked about the large number of law enforcement calls to both the Five Oaks Achievement Center and The Prairie Harbor facility. He asked how this facility could be any different. Bryant responded by saying that he and his partners live in Brenham and their intent is to run a different type of facility. Blankenburg added that they would not be pressured into just filling beds to please out of town investors. She said they plan on starting off with just a few students and grow slowly, adding that they do not expect to make a profit for several years.
Rev. Randy Wells of Faith Mission asked about the post discharge plans for the students. He said that just dropping the kids into the community when they finished the program wouldn’t work. Blankenberg said that a key part of the TBRI program is finding a family member that is willing to take in the student when they leave to help them transition into society.
County Judge John Brieden said that his biggest concern is that things could change if a local investor sells off to someone else or if the entire facility is sold. Bryant said that all he could offer at this time is that is not their intent, that they plan on operating the facility in Brenham for many years.
All I see here is three business men wanting to invest their money in a business that will benefit children having a rough time in life to rehabilitate them to help them become functional members In what ever communities they choose to reside in after treatment. So what if they make a profit doing it , no one starts a business to loose money. Instead of people prying into the their business and getting our community in an uproar and wasting our politicians and community leaders time you should be calling state reps and ask them why they have wasted your tax money to the point we can’t build state facilities to take care of them. Maybe you should be more concerned about the MHMR houses popping up in your subdivisions that are not secure facilities. Have you all forgot the caregiver that got murdered by one of those MHMR patients if I’m remember right about 7-8 years ago because the caregiver wouldn’t give the patient a cigarette and it upset them and that happened right here in Brenham close the junior high school .Society while vote for tax bonds to build multimillion dollar football stadiums that no high school kid is worthy to play in our cheer in or build overpriced decorative bridges that cost 3 times more than what a more plain Jane practical bridge would cost than take care of kids and MHMR patients.
A lot of the comments that have posted are suppositions not the facts. One was they are run for money. Of course they want to make money what business doesn’t. These kids are not drug addicts but the children of the addicts. Has anyone asked these folks what precautions will be taken to prevent these kids from running away. NO. Ask them. This will be a new facility from the ground up and precautions were taken when the plans were drawn. Keep in mind the state dictates what can and can’t be done.
I guess my question is….why did they not meet with all the officials before the dirt work started? Why have the uproar?
If they’re not required to meet before moving dirt, then why would they? If folks around here were required to meet all these people before they built a new barn or house on their property out ‘in the county,’ they would scream bloody murder. I’m more curious why this meeting was hosted by the county; isn’t this property within the city’s ETJ?
Tobe,
that is not my point at all! My point is, why, as a business coming into town, did they not at least maybe discuss this with someone so there would not be such a public uproar? And you are correct, I would scream bloody murder if I had to meet to build a “new barn, etc”. So I guess, if I wanted to put a half way house for child molesters on my property, I can do it and not have to let anyone know, at least till after the fact…….at least by your thinking….
They could have at least thought about the neighbors in the area and gotten their input, and educated the public BEFORE it went crazy in the news and all the negative was brought out.
that Tobe….was my point!
Tricia, you answer your own question. If they believe the neighbors and public might object to their project, and there’s no rule requiring them to announce it before they have begun, then why would they create the uproar by announcing it voluntarily before they start? Isn’t that how it went for the racetrack guys? And it is not my “thinking” — I don’t have an opinion on the utility of this project — so please save your outrage for the actual project, not other commenters.
Tobe
No outrage here! I really do not care if they build it. I might just apply for a job there myself. I am just stating a fact. And the racetrack people tried to fly it under the radar too and when the public got wind of it, they revolted. From your comments, I can tell it is not being built anywhere near you. It is not being built in my area either.
So by them flying it under the radar makes it a-ok I guess. So yes I answered my own question……they were afraid of the consequences of their decision so they kept it quiet.
ToBe, the property is located in the Brenham ETJ if it is within a mile of Brenham, that is the Brenham ETJ. The Brenham Ordinances clearly state that the ordinance is inforced in the ETJ. That subdivision ordinance controls development and storm drainage. What about fire protection? The first page of the ordinance states that the ordinance is enforced in the ETJ. Bottom line, the developer should have contacted the town of Brenham first. The developer has broken the law by breaking the ordinance. Hopefully, the Brenham officials WILL enforce the town’s ordinance.
Umm… How exactly has the developer broken the law?
Please read slowly and repeat a few times, as required: If you drive without a license you break the law. If you develop or build without a city building permit you break the law. Now, read, and repeat…….eventually, it should soak in.
No need to be insulting, ‘Frankly.’
You sound like you’re a city employee. If what you say is true, and if my property floods due to the city engineer not doing his/her job and enforcing the ordinance, I will not go down without a fight!
I bet that facility is sold to the highest bidder as soon as they can make it happen. They are out to make money- plain and simple!
Mr. Bryant and Ms. Blankenburg will get workers from Prairie Harbor, Five Oaks, and from the State school. This will leave a deficit in 3 facilities, while they flourish. Also, Mr. Bryant has stated that they will be like Miracle Farm at first, then he stated that they will be like the Krause Center in Katy. Both of those facilities only take “Specialized” and “Basic” level children. If he takes the “Intense”, “IPTP”, or the “Intense Plus” children, then he is not being truthful to the good people of Brenham and Washington County.
Maybe the State School/SSLC needs to have their employees taken away and then just maybe they will pay these much deserving employees what they deserve to make!! Research the pay there and you will see that it is very top heavy with the ones doing the day to day care making little to nothing; having to work overtime or work two jobs to make ends meet.
So true.
Er… your argument seems a little unclear; you seem to be suggesting that our society shouldn’t open new businesses if they will require employees. Or perhaps you would require that new businesses were only allowed to hire the unemployed, or those who are just entering the workforce for the first time? Please elaborate why you believe it is the responsibility of a new business developer to ensure that their new employees will not migrate from their existing employer?