Homeless Families Charged for
Shelter:
Louisville Group Implements Fee
LOUISVILLE, Sept. 28—The city's Salvation Army chapter is charging homeless families $5 a night if they stay at its downtown shelter for more than a week, an apparently unprecedented change that has angered some advocates for the homeless.
The Louisville organization started the fee this month as an incentive to pull people out of homelessness, said Maj. John Tolan, the agency's director of social services. Some people have been staying for months at the shelter, he said.
The National Coalition for the Homeless and the national Salvation Army in Arlington knew of no other shelters nationwide that charge families, although some charge individuals.
"It's something we don't agree to, wouldn't support," said Donald Whitehead, executive director of the D.C.-based coalition.
Some advocates for the homeless are urging the Salvation Army to reverse its policy.
"This is totally unacceptable. It's pathetic," said Marlene Gordon, executive director of the Coalition for the Homeless, which coordinates services among 25 shelters in Louisville and southern Indiana.
Theresa Whitfield, a spokeswoman for the Salvation Army's national headquarters, said local Salvation Army corps make their own decisions about charging for services.
Although the new policy comes as the Louisville Salvation Army copes with a budget crisis that forced it to lay off 12 workers this year, Tolan said the fee is not tied to finances. The charge is well below the $20 to $30 it costs to house and feed a person for one night, he said.
Families are permitted to stay without charge for seven nights in the 12-family shelter. After that, they must begin paying $5 a family at the door each night and meet with a counselor to discuss becoming self-sufficient.
"We are trying to make [families] aware that when they move out of shelter, they need to have a plan," he said.
Tolan said families who cannot pay would not be turned away and can earn additional free nights if they show they are working to improve their lives. The shelter also makes exceptions for people who are disabled or mentally ill.
"We're not putting families out on the street," Tolan said.
The Louisville organization implemented a $5 charge for individuals several years ago.
|
If
you have come to this page from an outside location click
here to get back to mindfully.org |