Galesburg City Council got an update from community partners on a warming shelter for residents in the cold weather months.
The Knox County Housing Authority and Salvation Army have partnered with the city to run a warming shelter the last two years.
Antoine says there are two options currently for the shelter.
There’s the former Lutheran Social Services building at 167 N. Kellogg St., although First Lutheran Church is requesting that the city fund renovations to the building that would render it usable.
They are also considering a building on KCHA grounds. There are two buildings at the Iowa-Woodland Bend location that historically had been used as a daycare and preschool.
The Housing Authority property option would be cheaper according to Antoine, with a difference of $10,000 compared to $30,000-$50,000 to renovate the Lutheran Social Services space.
Antoine says of converting the KCHA spaces, “We basically just have to put it in a couple of showers, a little bit of cleaning, freshening up, a washer and dryer and we’re ready to go,”
Moon Towers is available if there are no other spaces available but Antoine says that “was a lot” for that building to take on.
Antoine says last year $75,000 was budgeted and about $69,000 was spent. This year with an extra month the budgeted forecast is $86,000. Antoine says most of those funds go toward staffing.
Salvation Army Director of Operations Megan Templeton gave the council some insight into how the shelter has run the past few years.
She says there was a marked increase in the number of individuals using the shelter last year and almost double the amount of nights stayed.
Templeton says that’s probably due to a mix of the shelter being downtown and a general rise in homelessness in Galesburg.
Interim City Manager Wayne Carl says that the warming center started with federal ARPA dollars three years ago when the council set aside $155,000 to operate for three years.
There is still about $37,000 left to fund this year’s shelter, but Carl says the city should be able to find the funds.
