MANCHESTER, NH – Manchester Emergency Operations Center (EOC) announced Tuesday that the City of Manchester will open a 24/7 Winter Emergency Shelter located at 39 Beech Street at 7 p.m. on Thursday, February 2. The shelter will remain open until April 30, 2023.
The announcement follows a phone poll of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen approving the terms of the lease of the property. The City has also partnered with the YWCA to stand up a 16-bed women’s shelter at the site of the former Tirrell House, which is scheduled to open on Monday, February 6th.
“I want to thank all of the City employees and partners who worked around the clock to stand up this emergency shelter,” said Mayor Joyce Craig. “With the lack of statewide emergency shelter beds and extremely cold weather coming at the end of the week, this shelter is critical to saving lives.”
“I am proud of the efforts of the city to stand up three shelters in less than a month” stated Fire Chief Ryan Cashin. “The countless hours spent in the EOC and the outcome of those efforts will save lives.”
“The City’s warming station effort is now able to transition into full emergency shelter services for men and women for the coming months,” added Adrienne Beloin, Director of Homelessness Initiatives. “All guests are welcome to cots, on-site storage, showers, three meals a day, and a provider-enriched day space. We have an enthusiastic staff lined up with lots to offer by way of lived experience and recovery skills. We aim to have this be a safe and flexible space that moves people towards stability with housing, behavioral health, and income.”
The 39 Beech location will replace the temporary warming station with cots at the William B. Cashin Senior Activity Center, which has been operating from 7 p.m. – 6 a.m. since Friday, January 6.
In addition to 24/7 shelter provided by the City of Manchester, 1269 Cafe and HOPE for New Hampshire Recovery operate a warming station at 456 Union Street with the ability to serve up to 70 individuals and are open nightly from 8 p.m. – 7a,m.
Families in Transition operates the largest state-funded adult emergency shelter in New Hampshire, with 138 beds. Last night, Families in Transition had five available beds for men and five available beds for women.
Individuals can access state-wide shelter services or access Substance Use Disorder Support through The Doorway of Greater Manchester by calling 2-1-1 or 866-444-4211.
The City of Manchester Emergency Operations Center was opened on January 6th to serve as a consolidation point for the first responders and departments to facilitate decision-making to address unsheltered homelessness. In order to address the unsheltered homelessness crisis in the State of New Hampshire, the Board of Mayor and Aldermen have allocated $871,990 from the City’s remaining ARP, CDBG, and Affordable Housing Trust Fund dedicated to address immediate needs and concerns.
These initiatives are in addition to the City’s continued work to address homelessness and housing insecurity, which include over $11,000,000 of federal funds allocated to supportive and affordable housing over the last two years, daily outreach to encampments by first responders and outreach workers, administering the state’s only Healthcare for the Homeless program, and more.
