Officials in Holyoke are seeking input from the public on how the city should spend $1.1 million in funds from opioid legal settlements. There will be two sessions on Monday where residents can give their feedback.
They will take place from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. at the Holyoke Public Library and in the evening at the Council on Aging from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
"We're doing drop-in sessions where folks are going to have some interactive activities to come in, wander through the room and provide us feedback in a variety of manners so that we can collect that information," said Alicia Zoeller, the administrator for Holyoke’s office of community development.
For those who can't attend, there is also a survey posted on the city website where people can give their opinions.
The community engagement process is part of an agreement between Holyoke and the state related to the funding. The money can be spent in areas such as opioid treatment, supporting those in recovery and addiction prevention. And the public will have other opportunities to give feedback as the process continues towards making awards using the money.
Holyoke is expected to see more money from various opioid litigation settlements over the next 15 years.
Other communities, such as Longmeadow and Amherst are also currently seeking public feedback. Springfield in March announced the award of grants using settlement funds.
