HERE of Jackson County requests funding for homeless shelter
A local group is seeking to address homelessness in Jackson County. File photo
HERE of Jackson County, the county’s primary homeless services provider, is requesting half a million dollars from the county to purchase and renovate a facility that would become Jackson’s first and only permanent homeless shelter.
“This shelter would not just be a building, it’s a lifeline for individuals and families in crises,” said Director of HERE in Jackson County, Gretta Worley. “Our vision is the establishment of Jackson County’s first brick and mortar homeless shelter.”
The request comes at a time when Jackson County has lost critical resources for people experiencing homelessness, namely the sale of the University Inn, in addition to housing shortages and an economy riddled with rising costs.
“Homelessness is a reality in our county, and recent developments have made the need for a permanent shelter more urgent than ever,” said Worley during a presentation to the Jackson County Commission Jan. 7.
Until recently, University Inn in Cullowhee participated in a program that provided rooms for HERE of Jackson County to shelter people during extreme cold weather.
“This property served as the largest resource for sheltering individuals and families during these emergencies,” said Worley. “Unfortunately, [the previous owner] sold the University Inn and it has left us without the crucial option during what is already proving to be a harsh winter.”
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Through access to the University Inn, HERE had specifically been able to provide emergency shelter for families with children, as well as the elderly, offering up to 30 days of shelter while working to secure payment solutions. The two other hotels that HERE still works with in the county — the Economy Inn and the Golden Eagle Inn — do not accept children.
“This leaves us with no option for families with children who are in crisis,” said Worley. “So right now, I have families with children that cannot go into shelter because I have no place to put them.”
The lack of available shelter beds means that many in the community are left without protection during extreme weather. Worley says this shelter project is a direct response to that gap.
“At HERE in Jackson County, we are often the first point of contact for individuals experiencing homelessness,” Worley said.
In 2024 alone, HERE’s street outreach program conducted 60 intakes for homeless individuals in Jackson County. The program transitioned 28 households into permanent housing and provided eviction prevention to six households, keeping them in their homes.
“Despite these efforts, the lack of a centralized shelter prevents us from fully addressing the needs of families, children and elderly individuals,” said Worley. “This shelter will fill that void and provide a critical resource to our community.”
President of HERE’s Board of Directors, Marilyn Chamberlin, explained that even in the best of circumstances, using hotels to shelter unhoused individuals and families is not sustainable.
HERE plans to purchase and renovate a former daycare center in Jackson County, creating a facility that will operate as a cold-weather shelter during phase one of the project, capable of housing up to 24 individuals and two families beginning in November of this year. During the second phase of the project, the facility will transition into a year-round congregate shelter over the course of the following two years, providing a broader range of services and expanded capacity.
Needed renovations for the building include roof replacement, bathroom upgrades to accommodate adults and interior improvements that, according to Worley, will create “a safe and trauma-free, welcoming environment to residents.”
“Our vision is to make homelessness rare, brief and nonrecurring in Jackson County,” said Worley. “This shelter will not only address immediate housing needs but also connect residents with critical services including case management to help clients transition to stable permanent housing as well as a dedicated case manager to help our clients apply for and attain Social Security Disability Insurance benefits.”
The shelter will also allow people experiencing homelessness to access transportation assistance to jobs, healthcare and referrals to community partners for employment, mental health and other supportive services.
“By addressing homelessness proactively, this shelter will help reduce the average duration of homelessness in Jackson County by 40% within the first year,” said Worley. “This shelter will have measurable impacts on our community.”
HERE’s goal will be to transition at least 35% of individuals and 50% of families into stable housing within six months of admittance to the shelter and ensure that any percent of the housed individuals remain stable for at least one year in their residence.
“Beyond these outcomes the shelter will provide a safe, supportive space for individuals and families to regain their footing and build a path to stability,” Worley said.
HERE is requesting $500,000 from the county for the project. The money will go toward purchasing the facility, replacing the roof and updating the bathroom to ready the building for occupation as a cold-weather shelter by November. The organization is also pursuing additional funding through grants, donations and community partnerships in order to expand operations over time. A capital campaign that began in November has raised $24,000 towards the project.
“The impact of this shelter goes beyond numbers, it will directly address the Jackson County Board of Commissioners’ mission to ensure no life is at risk due to extreme weather; it will provide families with children and elderly individuals a safe and secure place to stay during times of crisis,” Worley said. “It will alleviate the strain on emergency services, healthcare and other community resources such as the county jail by creating a ripple effect of benefits across Jackson County.”
While HERE in Jackson County has reached out to Dogwood Health Trust to assist with funding in the past, Chamberlin says the organization is currently focusing nearly all its funding toward relief from Hurricane Helene.
The half a million dollar ask HERE is requesting from the county is significantly lower than the $3 million ask the organization floated a few years ago when the county was receiving American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds.
“I think the $500,000 is well within reach,” said Commission Chairman Mark Letson. “My biggest question is, who’s going to monitor, ensure that, especially if families are going to be in there, some of the mental health aspects and drug use?”
Chamberlin said the shelter would be staffed 24 hours. Like other shelters in the area, clients at HERE’s shelter would not be allowed to remain in the building 24 hours each day.
“They have to leave in the morning,” said Worley.
Commissioner Jenny Lynn Hooper inquired where people staying at the shelter go if they aren’t allowed to be there for 24 hours.
Chamberlin said that clients may be seeking mental health services during the day, working jobs, or using services that help connect them with employment.
“There’s lots of things that we can work with them to do,” said Chamberlin. “We’re not just going to set them out into the street.”
“Are these mandatory, that they go to these classes and that they work, or try to seek a job?” Hooper asked. “I mean there’s help wanted signs all over the place.”
Worley told commissioners that while HERE can suggest and offer employment services, it can’t force them upon those staying at the shelter.
“Well, if you can’t make them want to do something to either seek mental health and get a job or both, then they don’t have to do anything, they can just stay like they are,” said Hooper.
Regulations tied to funding that HERE receives through the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development promotes a “housing first” method that Worley said prevents the organization from forcing clients into any kind of services.
“If we do that, we lose the money that we have to help them to have for rent,” said Chamberlin. “With housing first, the federal government feels like as long as you have housing, then the other things will come. You’ll have a shower, you’ll feel like you can go to work, you feel like you can go out and look for a job. So that’s not our decision, that’s HUD.”
The board will consider HERE’s request for funding for a permanent homeless shelter during its upcoming budget season.
