A Midland shelter that’s been trying to expand has hit a roadblock.
Construction on the new Guesthouse homeless Shelter has been at a standstill for nearly three months. The work is on hold because officials haven’t been able to raise enough money to finish the project.
“A lot of people really don’t think about homelessness in the summer time and that’s when we were looking for money and it just wasn’t there,” says Bob Bruer, board president.
Officials need another $150,000 to get the work done. With cold weather quickly approaching, the shelter’s manager says timing is critical.
"We're supposed to be housing approximately 10 people overnight. We're seeing upwards of 15. If our numbers continue to grow, we will have to find alternative places for them to go,” says Beth McCormick.
The shelter has been running in the basement of Knox Presbyterian Church.
Three campaigns are now underway to raise the money needed to finish the new shelter, including an online voting contest called The Aviva Community Fund.
In order to win that money, the Guesthouse will need to garner the most votes of all the community projects in the online poll.
The deadline for voting is the end of the month.
