North Carolina group proposes 100-bed homeless shelter with leftover federal funds

A work group in North Carolina is aiming to allocate $3.6 million in leftover Federal American Rescue Funds to .

A shelter planning workgroup session at Haywood Street Church in Asheville on Wednesday focused on one option that would fund a 100-bed low-barrier shelter. The shelter being low-barrier would allow entry for anyone who needed a place to sleep. This means there would be no ID or sobriety requirements for entry and pets would be allowed.

There is a sense of urgency with the numbers," said Rev. Scott Rogers, who serves on the Continuum of Care Committee. "This is a great new collaborative effort."

Rogers said it has been decades since local homelessness nonprofit leaders were asked to participate in a unified effort to create shelter space and programs to address homelessness countywide.

"There is definitely a great need for more sheltering, more services for unhoused people," said Evan Richter, who volunteers for AHOPE Day Center in Asheville.

Richter came to the work group session to discuss the possible 100-bed shelter. But, Rogers and other leaders participating in the discussion said there is another option on how to use the leftover pandemic funds.

Rogers said there are three nonprofits that could expand bed capacity in their shelters, and they have contracts to provide shelter space during winter months.

A written plan is due by the end of July for the committee overseeing homeless plans. Federal funding requirements are that American Rescue Funds must be allocated by the end of this year.