MANCHESTER, N.H. – By a 10-4 vote, the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen authorized negotiations for an additional one-year lease extension and expansion of the Beech Street Shelter.
The current lease was extended to the end of June, with Manchester Director of Homeless Initiatives Adrienne Beloin and Manchester Fire Department Chief Ryan Cashin requesting authorization for a new extension until the end of June 2024. Cashin told the board that funding for the extension would come from the unexpended portion of the $1.14 million Fiscal Year 2023 money allocated to the shelter.
Beloin also proposed that part of the one-year extension that the facility expand from the approximately 4,000 to 5,000 square feet currently being used as an overnight shelter within the building and use up to 14,000 square feet, with the added space used as the recently proposed engagement center.
Beloin also added that the expanded shelter would become more proactive to the needs of the city’s homeless population and a new intake area would have a sign-in station connected to the statewide Homeless Management Information System, which would help the city gauge progress on getting people out of homelessness and assist in grant funding requests.
Alderman At-Large Joseph Kelly Levasseur expressed concern with what he saw as a lack of information on the proposal, with his frustration rising to the point that a motion was made to recess the meeting for five minutes.
Levasseur referred to the proposal as the “Taj Mahal” of engagement centers, and also felt that a vote on the proposal was improper until additional information could be provided, including cost.
Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig told Levasseur that information related to the proposal was included in the meeting packet.
Ward 3 Alderman Pat Long and Ward 5 Alderman Anthony Sapienza said they supported the concept, but echoed Lavasseur in saying they were uncomfortable supporting the project without a clearly defined budget.
Long was also joined by Ward 10 Alderman Bill Barry in seeking tangible benchmarks to ensure that individuals using the facility are being transitioned out of homelessness, with Beloin stating that data-rich monthly informational updates coming in the near future to the board can help show that progress.
Ward 6 Alderman Crissy Kantor criticized the concept of an engagement center entirely, stating that Beloin would be better served with a “tough love” model.
“We should be handing out basketballs and baseballs instead of needles,” she said.
Ward 7 Alderman Mary Heath said that the facility, which is within Ward 7, had received support from the constituents she had talked to, joining several members of the board that praised the facility’s efforts to date.
“You are meeting the needs of those that need services,” said Heath to Beloin. “No one chooses to be in that situation and the next step might be a home.”
There are 40 beds at the shelter, and Beloin said that the engagement center will likely attract 80 to 100 individuals on a staggered basis daily. Beloin also told Kantor that the current estimate of homeless individuals within the city is at 535 based on the most recent statistics gathered in the annual Point In Time (PIT) count.
Levasseur, Kantor, Barry and Ed Sapienza (Ward 8) voted against the motion, with the vote taking place after a non-public session so that aldermen could hear more details of the current negotiations with the landlord over terms of the lease.
