‘It will eliminate so many barriers’: Oshkosh Domestic Abuse Shelter expanding after 30+ years
OSHKOSH, Wis. (WFRV) – The Oshkosh domestic abuse shelter called Christine Ann is expanding, and its new facility is right next door at 240 Algoma Street.
“In the early 90s, we moved to this building at 206 Algoma Boulevard so we have been in this building for over 30 years now but we are just at a position right now, where we are outgrowing our current facility and we’re landlocked so there’s really not a lot of space to grow,” explained Christine Ann Executive Director, Alicia Wenger.
Limitations like only having 3 ADA-accessible rooms, 37 beds, 10 bedrooms, and not being able to accommodate pets have forced the organization to turn people away.
With the new building, Wenger said they will be able to serve even more people every year for for many years to come.
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“The building was not for sale, but they understood our need for growth and they agreed to sell us the building so as of January of this year we took ownership of the building and construction started on the first floor in early March and what’s wonderful about this building is our square footage is increasing from 19,000 square feet to 36,000 square feet,” she explained.
The building currently has 22 apartments, 11 on each floor. The 11 on the second floor will become the new emergency shelter.
“Our emergency shelter will be increasing from 37 beds to 64 beds on that second floor and then the third floor, which has 11 apartments will be completely dedicated to our brand new transitional housing program, which is one of the most exciting parts about this building because transitional housing has been a need in our community for quite some time,” explained Emily James, the Grant and Stewardship Specialist at Christine Ann.
James also said the new program will allow up to 11 individuals or families to stay at any given time and is designed to be longer term, so up to two years will be the time frame of that extended living.
In 2022, Alicia Wenger and Emily James started fundraising for the campaign and have been able to reach 5.9 million of their 7 million goal.
“We did receive funding from the city and the county spirit funds just to help this vision become a reality,” said Wenger. “The sale of our current building also goes towards this project so we have over 87% raised right now and that’s very exciting for this last community phase. I think what’s incredible about this building is the barrier it eliminates for folks.”
The renovations on the first floor are expected to continue through July, with August being the month to put furniture in and add the finishing touches before opening the new facility to residents in September.
For more information on the campaign, the expansion project, and to learn about the different ways you can help, visit the Christine Ann official website.
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