Male juvenile offenders who are exiting locked detention centers and stepping down to rejoin society will have a new supervised place to live temporarily in El Paso County.

The county’s Board of Commissioners voted 4-0 Tuesday with one member absent to approve funding of $300,000 from a 2023 Colorado House bill that pays for services for juveniles who are being detained due to criminal activity or are placed in residential settings in lieu of correctional detention.

The recipient of the three-year contract that El Paso County Department of Human Services will administer is Brad’s House.

Based in Monument, the nonprofit provides residential housing, services such as mentoring and treatment for at-risk males ages 8-18 with varying offerings at locations in Monument, Colorado Springs, Pueblo and Greeley.

“These programs offer a structured, supportive environment for teens who are leaving detention but still need supervision and services before returning to a family or community setting,” said El Paso County Department of Human Services spokesman Paul Myers-Bennett.

“It helps them safely transition out of secure facilities by building life skills, addressing behavioral needs and preparing for long-term stability.”

Brad’s House, which opened in 2017, contracts with the local Department of Human Services for structured, therapeutic treatment and care for adolescents with serious emotional or behavioral disorders, as well as teens who have experienced trauma or instability but do not require in-patient psychiatric care and can live in a group setting with 24/7 supervision.

The state licenses and accredits the organization for those programs, along with operation of 16 residential beds.

The therapeutic Brad’s House, named in memory of the late Weber State University basketball player Brad Barton, works with “the most underserved population of children in the foster care system” and helps clients develop coping mechanisms, stabilize behaviors and find ways to reunification with families or foster care or adoption, according to its website.

Throughout Colorado, county departments of human services are having trouble finding non-detention placements in foster care or group homes for minors with serious criminal behaviors and charges that include Class 1 felonies, the most severe criminal offenses, according to the funding request.

“Placements occur frequently and with urgency, and resources are scarce,” the agenda item summary states. “A highly structured, state-licensed residential facility was determined to be the most suitable alternative to legal detention.”

Brad’s House was the only provider in the area that indicated it was interested in adding the program to its roster, after the Colorado Department of Human Services asked providers in Colorado Springs to respond to the need for beds for youth transitioning out of court-mandated detention.

The approved state funding pays for additional reimbursement to providers above existing rates for placement when youth are stepping down from or in lieu of being placed in a detention facility, according to the summary. The project carries no cost to El Paso County.

“El Paso County Department of Human Services holds contracts with Brad’s House for each of their El Paso County locations as part of our ongoing commitment to meet the needs of adolescents requiring a higher level of care,” Myers-Bennett said.

The legislation was intended to remove barriers for placing youth with complex needs and supplying additional stabilizing treatment, he said.