Father Bill's new $19.5M shelter is far from downtown Brockton. What happens to old one?
BROCKTON — Construction officially began last week on Father Bill’s new housing resource center — a $19.5 million facility on Manley Street that is projected to open its doors in the fall of 2024.
The project includes a 24-hour emergency homeless shelter, as well as 32 apartments to serve as permanent housing for people struggling with long-term homelessness. The 3.5-acre property sits directly next to Brockton’s VA Medical Center.
In May, Father Bill’s celebrated the groundbreaking of its state-of-the-art housing center, which will replace the 128-year-old MainSpring emergency overnight shelter on Main Street.
The current emergency shelter houses roughly 130 people each night, totaling over 1,000 every year. Between 50 and 60 residents permanently live on the streets of downtown Brockton, according to Jazmine Bradsher, Brockton's director of social services.
Where is the current shelter located?
The MainSpring house, which closes each day from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., is in rough condition, with many residents describing mold and rats in the basement as well as broken tiles and ripped shower curtains in the bathrooms.
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Father Bill's still needs to raise $1 million to build new shelter
The new facility will utilize "best practices" when caring for unhoused citizens, according the Father Bill's President John Yazwinski. He said the development "will offer daytime supports including homelessness prevention, diversion and rapid re-housing, in addition to providing overnight shelter."
Father Bill's has raised enough money to start site work for the resource center, but still needs roughly $1 million to fully fund the project.
"We're all here today making a large statement. We are saying we don't manage homelessness, we end homelessness," said Yazwinski. "This new response, this new facility, will prevent homelessness...we will rapidly rehouse anyone that comes into our building."
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The facility has earned support from Brockton Mayor Robert Sullivan, as well as Gov. Maura Healey's office. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll spoke at the groundbreaking in May.
"Not every community welcomes the type of housing we need in Massachusetts and I think Brockton really stands out," Driscoll said. "I wish we had 25 or 30 more of them in the Commonwealth because that's how great the need is."
"This is the future," she said. "We're meeting people were they're at, a day center with a low barrier to entry."
New bus stop and sidewalk outside new shelter
In addition to the facility, the city plans to add a bus stop outside the property for guests to use, and the shelter will build a sidewalk that will stretch down to Belmont Street.
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When will the new shelter open?
Father Bill's acquired the property — which was formerly the United States Army Reserve Center — after placing a bid through the federal government's procurement lottery system, which awards local organizations with property previously owned by the U.S. government.
"It's projects the federal government puts out and it rarely ever goes to projects to serve the homeless people in this country," Yazwinski said.
One of the conditions when Father Bill's won the bidding lottery in late 2021 is to have the building operating within three years. The center is planned to open in fall 2024.
What will happen to the old Brockton shelter?
The current MainSpring shelter will likely be purchased by the city of Brockton, Yazwinski said.
Father Bill's plans to open a similar facility in Quincy in early fall of this year. Brockton's facility will be modeled after that housing center.
This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Brockton: Father Bill's homeless shelter moving near VA hospital
