$16 million Houston City Council vote on specialty homeless shelter delayed until next week
A vote on a $16-million homeless shelter in Houston's EaDo area was delayed, though Mayor John Whitmire confirmed plans for the adults-only center, which aims to offer psychiatric and drug addiction support.
Although this week’s city council agenda pulled a vote on a $16-million homeless shelter, Mayor John Whitmire told 2 Investigates there’s no stopping an adults-only “superhub” from being established in EaDo.
“This is the right time and the right place,” Whitmire said Tuesday afternoon.
The location is the site of a former homeless shelter that housed migrant children, only this time it will be housing the homeless who require psychiatric and drug addiction assistance.
Mike Nichols, the Director of the city’s Housing and Community Development Department, said last week the facility will provide, “Significant psychiatric support, we’re talking about professionals. Significant physical support, these are the folks who need the most.”
Whitmire says the neighborhood residents and business owners will experience a beneficial impact with plenty of support from law enforcement.
“We’re actually doing the neighborhood a huge favor because we will have all types of resources there and we’ll have HPD, we’ll have the Sheriff’s Office,” said Whitmire.
Residents and property owners told KPRC 2 they believe the shelter will impact their neighborhood’s safety and property value. They also made it clear that the city never made them aware of what was being proposed for their neighborhood.
“I have no idea. I don’t even know they were building one here,” said Sadique Dabo
Sharon Lambert, a 20-year resident considering a possible move, said she hadn’t been contacted by the city: “No, not that I’m aware of, no.”
How did she learn of it? By watching the “news”.
KPRC 2 pressed the mayor on the city’s low-profile approach, and Whitmire quickly acknowledged, “We can always do a better job.”
Whitmire says the vote will go to council next Wednesday. He anticipates the shelter being greenlit with doors scheduled to open in the first quarter of next year.
