In an attempt to help get more individuals experiencing homelessness into stable situations, Housing Forward is opening a new emergency shelter site at 112 S. Humphrey Ave., instead of renovating the one at the St. Catherine – St. Lucy Rectory.
Housing Forward had been planning to expand and double the number of beds available at the rectory from 20 to 40. This site at 38 N. Austin Blvd. has been in operation since 2023.
But upgrading the rectory to meet safety needs and ensure village code compliance proved to be too expensive an undertaking. The HVAC system and roof needed to be improved, along with ensuring fire safety and Americans with Disabilities Act compliance.
And the St. Catherine – St. Lucy Rectory is consistently at capacity. The new site on Humphrey Avenue, owned by the Oak Park Housing Authority, would allow for 42 beds and has bathrooms with two showers.
Housing Forward aims to open the new shelter site in February or March 2025, possibly closing the rectory site at that time. The 20 clients who regularly stay at the St. Catherine – St. Lucy Rectory will move to the new shelter, presumably leaving only 22 beds open. But Lynda Schueler, Housing Forward’s chief executive officer told trustees at the village board meeting Tuesday that the rectory might still be used for other functions later on.
Vanessa Matheny, the village’s community services administrator, had estimated work at the rectory could cost about $795,000. The village submitted a grant application for $637,166 in Community Development Block Grant – Coronavirus funds to help cover that cost. But the grant request was denied.
So, Housing Forward, unable to fund the rehab needed alone, looked for other options. Schueler explained Tuesday the site at Humphrey Avenue will require less capital improvement work and is already accessible.
The nonprofit can’t operate both shelters right now because of the high cost to improve both spaces and meet required codes, along with the operational cost of running both.
The new shelter would also have a commercial kitchen, dining area, office space and semi-private sleeping areas. It’s near public transit like the CTA Green Line and bus routes and would be open 365 days a year from 5 p.m. to 9 a.m.
To start up a new emergency shelter, Housing Forward estimates it’ll cost about $365,600. That money is already allocated and approved in the village’s 2025 fiscal year budget.
That amount will cover expanded staffing, food and rent expenses, and hotel stays for families, for whom an emergency shelter is not always ideal, Schueler explained. But this building will require some work too, including sprinkler system and water service improvements as well as other upgrades. Housing Forward has requested $250,000 from Cook County for those costs.
For long-term funding for the shelter operations, Housing Forward is looking at opportunities with Cook County or state funding. But the organization might have to ask Oak Park for more money.
Of Housing Forward’s entire client base, covering 26 communities in west suburban Cook County, 34 households are on the shelter waitlist as of Dec. 3, said Becki Stone, Housing Forward’s director of impact, system performance and strategy.
Of 99 households in Housing Forward’s street outreach roster, 42 are served in Oak Park. And four of those 42 households in Oak Park are families with minors, Stone said.
“[That] is a lot of young kiddos either sleeping outside or sleeping in cars tonight,” she said at the village board meeting Dec. 3.
Oak Park can’t solve homelessness statewide, Trustee Lucia Robinson pointed out. She said she wants individuals in Oak Park to have some level of priority for a shelter here, funded with Oak Park dollars. Schueler agreed but added that she can’t guarantee there won’t still be individuals experiencing homelessness sleeping outside in Oak Park. Especially with a greater need than beds available.
“If we’re having an unhoused problem in Oak Park, Oak Park dollars should be made available to meet that need,” Robinson said.
