SPRINGFIELD — While a long-term solution to the displacement of the Western Massachusetts Correctional Alcohol Center on Howard Street is still being hashed out, a short-term fix hinging on flexibility by MGM Springfield appears to be pending.

Hampden County Sheriff Michael Ashe, whose department runs the substance abuse treatment program in the old YWCA owned by MGM, said the casino company's flexibility is aiding the survival of the center which has treated more than 17,000 inmates for addiction since opening its doors in 1985.

"We're close to an agreement with MGM and we're looking at a departure date of May 1. So we'll be preparing for that departure date all month long," Ashe told The Republican on Wednesday. "The pressure is all on us to make it happen but I've talked it over with the staff there and we all want to make it work. It won't be easy but we want to get it done."

Ashe said that MGM has worked with the department since purchasing the building from Lyman Taylor Realty Co. LLC for $4,450,000, and that has aided his efforts to establish a short-term relocation while the state weighs proposals for a permanent solution.

Ashe said current tentative plans call for the first five weeks of the program, which are the most intensive and treatment-based of the 13, will be housed in the pre-release center next to the Hampden County Correctional Center in Ludlow. The final five weeks of the program will then be housed somewhere within the urban center of either Springfield or Holyoke, according to Ashe, while the Massachusetts Division of Capital Asset Management & Maintenance continues to work through proposals.

"We haven't settled yet but either one of these two cities right in an urban area is where we want to be," Ashe said. The process to find a long-term solution is still ongoing but making progress. I think one has to do with a renovation plan and another has to do with a new building in the Springfield area."

The Division of Capital Asset Management said it can not release details of any proposals until the review process has concluded.

The building the program currently occupies on Howard Street is the final disputed historic property in the casino's slated 14.5 acre footprint. On Tuesday, MGM held a groundbreaking ceremony at the old Zanetti School down the street with hopes of landing the final approval to begin construction in the coming weeks.