Ålesund municipality and the Blue Cross have collaborated for two decades on a housing offer for people in the city dependent on substances, involving 13 housing units and three other temporary residences since its start in 2006. The municipality will end the collaboration in summer 2026, as it has not renewed the agreement with the Blue Cross or tendered a similar offer. According to Sunnmørsposten, ending the agreement will save the municipality 11 million kroner annually.
The municipality will offer those in need support through other means than via the Blue Cross. Residents and staff express concerns about the personal impact of the closure. Jan Ove Hopland moved from a municipal housing to the Blue Cross housing offer in the autumn and says it was much better.
Hopland believes he might not be alive today if he had not moved to the Blue Cross housing, and he has reduced his alcohol consumption since starting to volunteer in the city, largely due to living at the Blue Cross. Hopland says many residents at the Blue Cross were previously evicted from municipal housing and will not get that offer back. Ann Elin Nesset, operations leader, says staff and residents are worried about what residents will get when they move out, and the staff group has high competence that will dissipate when the Blue Cross closes.
The municipality administration is expected to present a solution for those affected by April 13. Runar Paulsen, leader of the Health Committee in Ålesund municipality, says they expect the administration to present a solution for a defensible housing offer for all affected. Nesset believes the train has likely left regarding reversing the decision but supports the event to show the unique aspects of the offer.