After withdrawing our $4 million ARPA ask for Roots of Community, we have submitted a revised request to city leaders for $650,000 that could fund the following six projects:

Project Breakdowns:

Project #1: Adding showers and outdoor bathrooms to our Outreach Center at 3000 W. Chestnut Expressway to improve access to these critical services. We are asking for $50,000 for this project which would allow us to purchase six outdoor shower pods, construct an area in our back gate area for them to be set up, hire someone to construct the area and run plumbing, and purchase a large propane tank and propane for a year’s worth of showers at the center, and a handicap accessible port-a-potty to go with our regular port-a-potty already at the Outreach Center outdoors.

Project #2: Add long-term storage to the Outreach Center that could be accessed during the hours our Outreach Center is open. Individuals would be asked to complete 2 hours of volunteer time a month to maintain their storage. We are asking for $30,000 for this project which would allow us to purchase two additional conex units that can be set in our back gate area at the Outreach Center. We would also purchase shelving and large storage totes with these funds, as well as a laptop and additional security measures in this area of our property.

Project #3: Expand the hours that the Outreach Center is open and provide services. We are asking for $24,000 to hire an additional staff member to oversee operations at expanded times. Currently, the Outreach Center is open 12 hours a week on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 9 AM-1 PM. We would expand to offer an additional 12 hours of operations, allowing us to expand our volunteer program.

Project #4: Money for our Outreach Fund to be used to stock up on needed supplies, food, medical supplies, and our diversion and discretionary funds to help meet needs in our community and overcome barriers to getting people back to work, into housing, into shelter programs, staying in housing, etc … We are asking for $93,350 in these funds.

Project #5: Expansion of our Respite House program. We are requesting $340,000 to purchase a 4-5 bedroom house, do needed renovations to comply with ADA codes, and set the house up with furniture for guests. This would become our men’s respite house, and our current house would become a house for women so that we can provide care to more individuals in need of a safe place to recover from physical injuries and illnesses. We would also ask that the committee consider an additional $80,000 in funds to pay off our current respite house on Water street so that the $700 a month paid for that mortgage could go to meet outreach needs in our community. We receive 3-5 calls weekly about the need for respite that we often have to turn down due to lack of availability. Our respite program also strives to help find the next steps for guests that do not require them to return to the streets. We have worked with 18 guests, and 11 of those have gone on to housing, programs, or returned to family after staying with us.

Project #6: We are seeing more and more families without stable shelter who have small children with them. We would like to open our church building to three families at a time in a Safe to Sleep style congregate shelter that would be open each night from 6 PM to 7 AM the next morning. We would be able to work with no more than three families at a time to help them get appointments at One Door for family assessments and for them to have a safe place to sleep while waiting for a room at other resources. To add this outreach, we are asking for $40,000, which will provide a salary for a staff member to oversee the shelter, cots, bedding, gas cards for families, a conex for storage at the church to store chairs and family belongings during their stays.

This brings our total ask of the committee to $650,000. Each of these projects was selected for its short turnaround timelines and ability to make a quick impact on meeting basic needs and expanding/creating services for hyper-vulnerable individuals without shelter.