The Ozark Mountain Alcohol Residential Treatment facility in Gassville, now serving exclusively as a transitional housing center for parolees, is set to close next month.The chairman of the Arkansas Department of Correction’s board, Benny Magness of Gassville, says OMART officials were notified in writing this week of the planned closure on April 15th.Magness says the planned closing follows continued inspection issues at the facility. The issues included cleanliness and drug testing documentation. He added the drug testing itself had been performed. Inspections are conducted every 30 days, with the last one completed on Friday.Magness says between 20 and 25 parolees are currently housed at OMART, and they will be absorbed into other transitional housing center locations. A date for their transfer has not been determined.
In early April last year, in a meeting with members of the media, OMART’s Board Chairman Heith Hogan said the facility has been partially engaged in transitional housing with Arkansas Community Correction for about 10 years.
Today, the facility is licensed to house about 50 medium level male offenders. Residents generally are allowed to stay up to 60 days and wear ankle monitors. In some cases, stays are extended an additional 30 days.
Hogan said the move to a complete transitional housing facility began in 2017 as OMART continued to see declining state revenue, with funding for drug and alcohol treatment being moved to other locations across Arkansas.
Hogan said at that time the Gassville facility operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with eight employees and a five-member board.
Hogan said because of the previous partial operation for transitional housing, OMART was grandfathered in as an exclusive temporary home for parolees, with no public notifications required.
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