HYDE PARK, Vt. (WCAX) – Dozens of community members celebrating a long battle to open up the Lamoille Community House in Hyde Park.
“We had a couple of years 2015, ‘16, ‘17, where we tried to put something together, but there was a lot of push-back,” said Rabbi David Fainsilber from the Jewish Community of Greater Stowe.
While the first attempt to build a homeless shelter was rejected by the community, faith communities were letting the homeless sleep in their basements.
But since 2015, Lamoille County shelter workers say the amount of homeless people they see a year has gone up from 60 to 560. Crediting the shift to the pandemic and rising housing costs, they decided to try again.
With federal and state grants and funding from private donors and volunteers a grassroots group of activists transformed the old Forest Hill Assisted Residential Care home into the Lamoille Community House.
“Together we create community. Being a part of community helps us feel a sense of belonging. A sense of belonging is essential in living a life that’s full of purpose and meaning. this sense of community and belonging is why we are here,” said Lamoille Community House Executive Director Kim Anetsberger.
A housing navigator will help people to move out of here, but the shortage of accommodations seems to be the most challenging hurdle for the county to overcome.
“We don’t have enough housing units for people to move into,” said Anetsberger.
A dozen or so people will now move in, trading their spots on cots in a shared room, to a small cottage.
“They’ll put their clothes away in their dressers, close the doors to their individual bedrooms, and retire for the night in a real bed,” said Anetsberger.
Moving forward, shelter employees tell me they expect the Lamoille Community House to be full by Monday, and already have a wait list for new clients.