Olmsted County shelter plan won't uproot Center Street apartment building's tenants

Sep. 12—ROCHESTER — Residences at Old Town Hall has provided housing to struggling residents since the early 1960s, owner Jeff Allman said. And he's grateful it will continue to do so, if Olmsted County can secure the funding to purchase and renovate the

East Center Street apartment building.

"These buildings, if you fix them up, will last another 100 years," he said of the building he owns and has offered to sell to the county to create a Housing Stability Center.

Part of the purchase agreement calls for the county to ensure the building's current residents have a place to stay.

"(These are) people who have been here as long as 16 years, living on minimum wage jobs or disability payments or modest financial support," Allman said. "Most without cars, they all reported having had sleepless nights and fear losing their homes."

The majority of the single-occupancy units — 45 of 66 — are contracted for Luther College students, who spend a year in Rochester as part of their studies, and four of the units are reserved for building staff and a program that provides temporary housing for police officers seeking medical care at Mayo Clinic.

The contract with Luther College runs through May of 2025, and Allman said the county has agreed to honor the commitment, if it purchases the building.

That leaves 17 residents with standard leases.

County housing staff met with residents Monday night to confirm they will be able to call the building home as long as they want. No one is expected to be forced to move.

"We are not in the business of creating homelessness at the housing department of Olmsted County," said Mary O'Neil, the county's housing stability team program manager.

Olmsted County Housing Director Dave Dunn said plans call for maintaining the existing rental units, which are single rooms with shared kitchens on each floor, while transforming the back section of the first floor and the basement into a new nighttime shelter and offices for a variety of housing support.

Residents would continue to enter the building from the front door, while the new center's entrance would be from the rear of the building.

The project is anticipated to cost $12.7 million, with up to $10 million being sought through a state grant.

The center would replace the Rochester Community Warming Center, 200 Fourth St. SE, and nearly double the number of available county-provided beds for nightly stays.

It's a need city and county officials have been discussing for months, if not years.

A recent county outreach effort identified

a growing number of people who are living in Rochester without shelter.

"(County staff) conducted a three-day count in July of this year, and we found 174 people were outside, or staying in their vehicles," she said, pointing out that roughly two-thirds of the people contacted were living in Olmsted County before becoming homeless.

"They are neighbors of ours," she added. "They are part of our community."

Dunn said plans call for the county to continue working with Catholic Charities of Olmsted County to operate the center and provide a variety of support services.

Beyond the nightly shelter, the proposed center will also provide support for residents struggling to pay rent and others seeking to find housing alternatives. Dunn said the key goal is to

work with the community to ensure housing needs are met.

Some residents living in the neighborhood east of downtown have expressed concern about the potential move for the nightly shelter, and Dunn said he plans to continue having discussions about what is happening and what steps are being taken to support neighbors.

He plans to attend a meeting of the Eastside Neighborhood Association at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Boys and Girls Club, 1026 E Center St., to discuss holding a neighborhood forum regarding the proposed Housing Stability Center.

Eastside Neighborhood Association board members said they are watching what unfolds, knowing any changes will require approval of state funding.

"We're glad to know any such plans aren't as 'impending' as we were under the impression they were Sunday, Sept. 10," Neighborhood Association President Matthew Romanauski said. "We're looking forward to continuing to follow the process and informing our neighbors on the latest developments in this process. In keeping with our mission, the ENA board is also anticipating hearing from Eastside residents about how those plans affect their health, safety, and wellbeing.

"We'll do our due diligence to address their concerns and share residents' thoughts with city and county representatives as the process unfolds."

Rochester City Council member Kelly Rae Kirkpatrick, who represents the ward and lives five blocks from Residences of Old Town Hall, said she's been listening to neighbors' concerns and understands the worry behind the unknown. She also said the ward has seen an uptick in negative activity connected to people experiencing homelessness.

At the same time, she said the demographics of the neighborhood indicate Eastside is uniquely qualified to step up and support the mission being proposed.

"We understand poverty," she said. "We understand homelessness."

The process for potentially converting the apartment complex is expected to take the bulk of two years, if not longer.

The county plans to submit its application for state funding by Sept. 28, and notification of funding is expected at the end of the year.

If approved, O'Neil said work on renovating the building would begin next year, with the goal of completing the project during the summer of 2025.