BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Several residents shared their support Tuesday for Bethlehem to use $1.4 million in federal dollars to create a new multi-million dollar homeless shelter.
“We are Bethlehem, founded by the Moravians,” city resident Kathy Caceres said at the hearing. “It’s so amazing that we still don’t have enough room at the inn.”
- Bethlehem held a public hearing Nov. 1 on its plan to spend American Rescue Plan grant money on a new homeless shelter
- A handful of city residents spoke at the meeting, all in support of the city’s plans
- Specifics on other funds used to fund the shelter are expected when the city introduces its budget on Nov. 11.
“I offer my support and words of encouragement to you all, as Council,” Lindsey Clifton, an associate pastor at First Presbyterian Church of Bethlehem, said, “To keep this moving forward, trusting that the community is with you and behind you and supporting you.”
The federal program making the grant, called HOME-ARP, divided up nearly $5 billion set aside by the American Rescue Plan Act. The money can be spent on creating affordable housing, rental assistance, supportive services like housing counseling, or to build a new homeless shelter.
“We are Bethlehem, founded by the Moravians. It’s so amazing that we still don’t have enough room at the inn.”Kathy Caceres, Bethlehem resident
This opportunity for public comment was part of a prescribed process to receive the grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development [HUD]. Other steps have included outreach to organizations that already serve homeless people and research to find gaps in existing services.
Once the plan is finalized and submitted to federal officials in the coming weeks, HUD has 30 days to review it, and if approved, city officials say the department will release the money for Bethlehem to use.
The grant will only pay for a fraction of the shelter’s price tag, with city funds and money from other federal programs filling in the rest.
A first for the Lehigh Valley
The planned shelter will have 50-70 individual rooms, four family-sized units, and 10 emergency beds in a shared space. It will also house a commercial kitchen, laundry facilities and social services for its residents. It will cost as much as $7 million to construct, according to estimates from the city, and upkeep is expected to cost roughly $10,000 per bed, per year.
According to Bethlehem’s Director of Community and Economic Development, Laura Collins, it would be the Lehigh Valley’s first year-round emergency drop-in shelter for people without housing.
City officials say the shelter is meant to provide immediate housing for anyone who needs it, before they are entered into a state system that helps connect homeless people with resources and more stable housing.
A clearer picture of Bethlehem’s plans, and how much they will cost, is expected to emerge when the city’s new budget is released on Nov. 11.
