Stabbin Wagon, a Medford-based harm-reduction nonprofit, has signed a contract with the Oregon Health Authority for a $1.5 million grant to create a peer-run respite program in Jackson County, the health authority confirmed.

Called Mountain Beaver Respite, the program will offer stays of up to two weeks in a homelike environment for adults in emotional or psychological extremis. Guests — up to six at a time — can come and go at will. The low-barrier facility, described by Stabbin Wagon as a “non-clinical alternative to hospitalization,” will be staffed by trained “peers” who have experienced similar travail, understand the mental health treatment world and will be on hand for guests 24/7.

Derek DeForest, a representative with the Mountain Beaver Respite team, said in a statement Friday: “The Mountain Beaver House will provide a safe place for people in distress to seek support and turn crisis into an opportunity for growth and healing.

“We are excited to have a fully signed OHA contract, and to begin the work of creating this peer-run respite in Jackson County,” he continued. “Our respite will have two outreach staff, whose jobs will include connecting with local community members and existing healthcare providers to educate people about the peer-respite model, how to access it and build partnerships for longterm success — so expect a lot more news from us in the coming months.”

Alicia LeDuc Montgomery, a Washington state-based lawyer representing the nonprofit, said in September that Mountain Beaver Respite will operate under Stabbin Wagon’s nonprofit status but run separately from its harm-reduction service. Much of the peer-respite team has been hired and will not include current Stabbin Wagon staff, she said.

In its grant proposal, Stabbin Wagon says the program will follow the “Peer Respite Handbook: A Guide to Understanding, Building, and Supporting Peer Respites,” a text largely authored by the Wildflower Alliance which runs a respite center in Massachusetts.

The nonprofit had signed — and OHA had confirmed receipt of — an earlier contract for a peer-respite center. In an email, Tim Heider, a Health Authority spokesperson, called the more recent one a “fully executable contract.”

Heider said the contract “reflects recent changes OHA has made to peer-respite grant agreements to ensure there are clear deliverables and oversight.

“Now that the contract is signed, OHA will work closely with Stabbin Wagon to support and monitor implementation goals,” Heider continued. “This grantee — as is the case with all OHA grantees — will be subject to regular oversight to ensure they are meeting terms and conditions of their grant agreement, including project deliverables.”

The Health Authority did not say when the peer-respite grant funds would be available. When they come through, the money will cover two years of operation.

Stabbin Wagon is one of 11 organizations that applied for a portion of $6 million allocated through HB 2980, a 2021 Oregon law that sought to establish in the state four peer-run respite programs, including one in Southern Oregon, and fund them for two years.

Of the five applications that made it to the evaluation stage, Stabbin Wagon’s scored highest. It is one of three peer-respite projects the state chose to support, though the Health Authority has paused one grant, for the Portland-area’s Black Mental Health Oregon, pending a state Department of Justice investigation, The Lund Report reported in August.

In addition, the Health Authority’s Measure 110 Oversight and Accountability Council has approved another round of grant funding for Stabbin Wagon’s harm-reduction efforts.

The operation’s original grant for July 2022 through December 2023 is $582,396.

The extension, for January 2024 through June 2025, is for $581,645.35, bringing total Measure 110 grant funds to $1,164,041.35.

Melissa Jones, Stabbin Wagon’s founder and director, said in a statement Friday that the Measure 110 grant extension “allows us to continue supporting People Who Use Drugs (PWUD) and fight the current overdose crisis in our community, and in a way that has no cost to city or county budgets.

“There is a huge demand for these low-barrier, no-cost services in Southern Oregon,” she continued. “Our team of experienced, dedicated staff is excited to innovate access to resources and help in a safe and supportive environment, valuing autonomy and self-determination. We look forward to helping fulfill this aspect of the public’s intent in enacting M110.”

She added: “People in chaotic use and/or crisis need support and help, not jail and fines. Criminalizing substance use, mental and emotional distress, is just a more expensive way of adding to the homelessness crisis, which doesn’t help cities, counties or any of the folks who desperately need services.”

Stabbin Wagon got its name from an early version of its harm-reduction operation: a rolling cart with free supplies, including sterile injection needles, for safer drug use and overdose prevention. The crew now operates out of a white cargo van that rotates among different sites during the week. Jones said in an email that the organization has “hired two peer-support workers to help with one-on-one needs,” such as referring people to clinical services if they wish.

The nonprofit has drawn controversy for its outspoken radical-left views and often adversarial stance toward city leaders and law enforcement. Jones, who advocates for houseless as well as drug-addicted individuals, has decried the city’s approach to homelessness, including sweeps of encampments and restrictions on tent use.

Jones and an associate, Samantha Strong, are facing criminal charges, including interfering with an officer, in Medford Municipal Court stemming from an Aug. 3 confrontation with city police during a Stabbin Wagon-sponsored “HIV Testing Party” at Vogel Plaza. They have pleaded not guilty.

This story has been updated to include comment from a representative with the Mountain Beaver Respite team.