With the state's emergency shelter system maxed out, the United Way of Massachusetts Bay announced Wednesday that it is partnering with a pair of organizations to open temporary, overnight shelters in north central Massachusetts that will serve up to 23 families.
The Spanish American Center and Opportunities for Hope plan to use grants to "provide shelter to extremely low-income families with children, and pregnant people who have an urgent and immediate need." The shelter option will be available to local families and newly arriving migrant families, the United Way said. The locations of the new temporary shelters were not announced due to "security and privacy reasons," according to a United Way official.
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Gov. Maura Healey on Nov. 7 announced the grant program, appealing for communal gathering spaces with restroom facilities and heat, such as community centers, school buildings, and places of worship. The United Way released the SafetyNet Shelter Program application on Nov. 13.
Since then, United Way Vice President Sarah Bartley said Wednesday, teams have "engaged in site visits and planning conversations with more than a dozen partners from all regions of the state, and have been actively receiving proposals from churches, community centers, service providers, and local coalitions."
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"We expect to see additional sites resulting from these conversations, as well as new collaborations that will enhance the existing system," Bartley said.
On Nov. 22, Catholic Charities launched the first overnight safety-net shelter opened in Greater Boston under the $5 million public grant program managed by United Way of Massachusetts Bay.
A surge of migrants flowing into Massachusetts has stressed the emergency shelter system, prompting the state to turn to hotels and motels to expand capacity. Healey declared a state of emergency in August and the shelter caseload has risen sharply all year, triggering hundreds of millions of dollars in unanticipated expenses.
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The number of families currently awaiting a spot in Massachusetts' emergency assistance shelter system has climbed to 242 in the month since the Healey administration implemented a cap of 7,500 families in the state-run system.
The number of families in shelter has mainly floated just above 7,500 since Nov. 9, on most days with about 7,520 to 7,545 families enrolled.
State House News Service's Sam Drysdale contributed to this report.
