We promote public safety and challenge offenders to become responsible, productive citizens through firm, fair, consistent supervision, treatment, and education. With not much of a stake with which to get started and sometimes no job prospects or residence, the odds of returning to prison were substantial. Returning to prison served neither the interests of the public (as taxpayer or victims) nor
the offender. As a result, in the late 70's Montana had filled its new prison and still had prisoners in the old territorial prison that it was meant to replace. Alternatives, Inc. opened the doors of the Alpha House men's pre-release center on June 9th of 1980 with a view to supporting public safety and improving the chances of offenders successfully returning to the Billings community. The fact that Alpha House (initially Community Halfway Group House) opened its doors at all was a testament to the perseverance of members of the Billings community who faced an uphill struggle to win public support, locate housing, and secure funds for what was then a novel program. The non-profit organization was born in the basement of the First Congregational Church where Polly Holmes, a Billings legislator, gathered a Board that included other legislators, college professors, lawyers, the Police Chief, and countless others for early morning meetings. With the assistance of a consultant Rusty Rokita of Hardin, the Alternatives' Board gained legislative authority for a contract with the Department of Corrections (then Department of Institutions) and signed a lease for space in the Chapple building located at 104 North 31st Street. The leased space in the Chapple building had been vacant for 17 years and was formerly the site of the Alexandra Hotel. In early 1980 the race was on to renovate the space to include offices, bedrooms, and a kitchen in time for the opening. On June 9th five male inmates arrived in Billings and were the state's first pre-release clients. The emphasis in the early years of the program was finding employment for offenders and developing a parole plan that included a place to live, adequate savings, and referrals to community counseling services. Over the years case management and security staff have been supplemented with Licensed Addictions Counselors, Licensed Certified Professional Counselors, job development personnel, nursing staff, and recreation managers. addresses chemical dependency, anger management, criminal thinking, the effects of trauma, domestic violence, parenting, and mental health concerns through individual and group sessions with clients. In the mid 1980's Alternatives began offering jail alternative services in Yellowstone County and by the 90's in Stillwater and Carbon counties. These programs offer alternatives to incarceration for misdemeanor offenders and include a broad range of treatment and supervision services. Annually, over 6,000 referrals are made from City, Justice, and District Courts to the jail alternative programs. Clients may participate in many of the counseling services offered to residential clients in addition to supervision services including urinalysis, breath testing, electronic monitoring, misdemeanor probation and supervision, SCRAM (24 hour per day drug and alcohol monitoring), and remote breath testing. Residential services are also offered in the form of detention and work release placements. In 2007 Alternatives, Inc. opened its Passages program in the former Howard Johnson Motor Lodge on South 27th Street. This unique program for women offers inpatient drug and alcohol treatment, a statewide intake facility for offenders sentenced to the Department of Corrections, a sanction center for probationers, and a pre-release center. As with the men's program Alpha House, the Passages program serves clients from the Federal Bureau of Prisons as well as state referred offenders. Today this Billings based non-profit organization serves more than 350 residential clients each day and offers jail alternatives to thousands of lower court referrals. The agency is governed by a twenty-five member Board of Directors whose membership includes business people, elected officials, law enforcement, and probation and parole representatives, educators, and community volunteers. is dedicated to working towards solutions to crime and addictions related problems as a community based organization. It is our belief that the community is strengthened when offenders become responsible, productive citizens.
