City offering $5 million to develop a hotel-style homeless shelter in Springfield

Harrison Keegan, Springfield News-Leader
·2 min read
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The city of Springfield announced Monday it has a little more than $5 million in federal funds available for a developer to create one or more non-congregate homeless shelters in the city.

Through a Notice of Funding Availability, the city is seeking applications over the next three weeks from developers willing to take on the project.

Non-congregate shelters allow for individuals and families to stay in their own living quarters as opposed to all together in a large open space like traditional shelters.

The city says the $5,001,000 available for this project comes from $2,215,703 of U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) HOME-American Rescue Plan (HOME-ARP) funding and $2,785,297 of U.S. Treasury Department American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.

The funding can be used for the acquisition, construction, renovation, or rehabilitation of one or more buildings but not for the operating costs, so applicants must show "they have secured or have a high likelihood of securing operating funding for at least 10 years," according to a news release from the city.

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Monday's announcement comes at a time when the lack of shelter space in Springfield has been top of mind. During a stretch of brutal cold weather in December, several area churches were called on to provide emergency overnight shelter space. And advocates say the Greene County Sheriff's Office's controversial clearing of homeless camps this month has further cast a light on the lack of available resources in the area.

The city's news release lays out some important deadlines for the non-congregate shelter project:

  • Letters of Intent will be accepted until noon on Tuesday, Feb. 21 at the Planning and Development Office on the second floor of the Busch Municipal Building;

  • Upon acceptance of Letters of Intent, full proposals will be accepted until noon on Thursday, March 23 at the Planning and Development Office on the second floor of the Busch Municipal Building;

  • All non-congregate shelter projects utilizing U.S. Treasury Department ARPA funds must be completed no later than Dec. 31, 2026;

  • All non-congregate shelter projects utilizing HOME-ARP funds must be completed no later than Sept. 30, 2030.

Due to the complex nature of the federal programs, the city is strongly encouraging interested parties to attend one of two Pre-Proposal Technical Assistance Meetings on the second floor west conference room at the Busch Municipal Building (840 Boonville Ave.). The first is Wednesday at 2 p.m., and the second is Feb. 6 at 2 p.m.

Developers with questions about the project can reach out to Bob Jones, grants administrator, 417-864-1593 or Bob Atchley, senior planner, 417-864-1308.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Springfield seeks applicants to build non-congregate homeless shelter