Proposed temporary homeless shelter recommended

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Efforts to create a temporary homeless shelter in the former Grace United Methodist Church for people suddenly facing the crisis of homelessness got past the first of two city reviews.

The Williamsport Planning Commission on Monday reviewed and recommended a special exception needed for the project, which now goes to the Zoning Hearing Board on Dec. 17 for final approval.

The application was filed by the non-profit Lycoming Neighborhood Development Corp. in cooperation with the Family Housing Alliance, a countywide coalition of non-profit social service providers.

Both LNDC Executive Director Edward Lyon and Rosann Pelleschi, Lycoming County United Way director of funds distribution and alliance chairwoman, attended the planning commission meeting.

According to Lyon, LNDC will prepare the interior of the church for use as a shelter, but he said there will be no permanent changes to the exterior or interior design of the church.

"What we're going to do is (install) temporary dividers," he explained.

LNDC will oversee the alterations if the use is approved by the hearing board.

Like the planning commission, the zoning hearing board will be provided with plans for the work.

According to Pelleschi, the project is needed based on the number of people seeking help after foreclosures and evictions in the area.

They said the shelter would be a temporary stopover for people screened by the alliance's member organizations, and the goal is as short a stay as possible while arrangements are worked out for alternative accommodations and programming.

The expected average stay at the shelter was described as about 48 hours.

According to Pelleschi and Lyon, the project is in response to the local demand for emergency housing in the wake of the national financial crisis. They suggested the homeless locally include the "invisible homeless," who have lost jobs and then housing. Those people try to stay day by day with relatives or friends willing to put them up on a temporary basis.

The alliance is composed of human service providers, including the United Way, Salvation Army, American Rescue Workers and others.