A nonprofit organization that operates in Little Rock and seven other states that is wanting to become the first operator of a homeless shelter in Pine Bluff made a pitch to city leaders Thursday, saying the first year of operations would cost the city more than a half-million dollars. City officials said much of that money would come from outside sources.
Depaul USA, which operates Jericho Way, a day center in Little Rock for the homeless, submitted a proposal to the city to operate Opportunity House, Pine Bluff's planned shelter, which will be located at the old First Ward Elementary School at 1300 E. Fifth Ave.
Two Depaul officials met in person and one met online to make a presentation to a local committee that has been advising the Mayor's Office on what a homeless shelter in Pine Bluff should include. City officials and others also attended the meeting, which was held in the Council Chambers.
Based on the criteria for the shelter that the committee, Mayor Shirley Washington and her assistant, Cynthia Anderson, the project manager, have said are necessary, it would appear that Depaul's proposal will be seriously considered.
"I think we're moving in the right direction," Washington said after the hour-long meeting that included a PowerPoint presentation from Charles Levesque, executive director of the Chicago-based Depaul USA, who spoke to the audience by way of a streaming service. "I frequently hear from citizens asking when are we going to get a shelter. Some of the people who need the service are returning from penal institutions and need to get back on their feet."
James Evans-Hammond, director of Jericho Way, went through the particulars of a phase one budget that included such items as personnel, supplies, food and administrative expenses totaling $540,694 for the first year and a maximum client load of 30 individuals. In all, there would be eight full-time employees, including one case-worker, and five part-time employees, he said.
That amount is slightly above what the city wanted to spend, but Washington said she felt good that the two sides were close.
"As a committee, we said if the cost to operate the facility was more than $500,000, we couldn't do it, that it would probably be beyond our means. So we still have some negotiating to do, and we're comfortable with where we are," Washington said.
She also said she was pleased with Depaul's presentation and the nonprofit's track record.
"We called other cities where Depaul operates centers and asked what their experience was, and we heard only good things, no complaints," Washington said.
A second phase for Opportunity House under Depaul would include the addition of a second case worker allowing the facility to handle as many as 50 clients, a number that has been the goal of the committee's from the outset.
Tish Stevenson, assistant director at Jericho Way, who has been with Depaul for six years, highlighted the many ways the Little Rock facility works to increase a client's chances of conquering homelessness. From providing laundry services, showers and hot meals to mail, phone, internet and health care services, Jericho Way works to solve what stands in the way of someone becoming self-sufficient, she said.
The nonprofit is successful, the three officials said, because it creates partnerships with a variety of entities providing social services in a community, even extending that outreach to colleges, which, they said, sometimes have students who become homeless because they can't afford to pay their tuition and also maintain a place to live.
Levesque said much of what he does is raise money for Depaul USA, either through grants or through donations from foundations and individuals. Such work, he said, would also fall to a new director of Opportunity House who would not only have to oversee the internal operation but also start bringing in donations.
"No money, no mission," Levesque said. "Absolutely, we have to focus on both."
Those raised dollars, he said, would not supplant the funding required from the city but instead would be used to expand what Depaul could do in the community.
In Little Rock, for instance, the amount the city pays Depaul to operate Jericho Way does not now cover what that operation provides to the community, such as the construction of housing for low-income individuals. Consequently, additional funding is raised by Depaul to pay for those extra services, Levesque said.
To help the Pine Bluff project, Levesque said he would consider rebranding the operation in the state in order to leverage donations from central Arkansas.
The city of Pine Bluff would also be looking for outside dollars from grants and donations to pay for the operation of the facility.
Washington said the city would be able to find $300,000 in grant money for the project, leaving the city to pay around $200,000 out of its own pocket, although she said there are other grants and fundraising opportunities that could be used to reduce the city's portion even more.
In addition, the city would be responsible for the maintenance and utilities associated with the facility, although Evans-Hammond said that, after the first year, Depaul would look at its finances and could possible take responsibility for paying the utilities.
Larry Matthews, director of the Economic and Community Development Department, said the work to renovate the First Ward school has been estimated to cost $600,000 and that the job will be advertised in mid-August. Grants and federal dollars would also be used for that work, he said.
Anderson said the committee would now meet to consider the presentation made by Depaul. A green light from the committee would send the proposal to the City Council. Washington said she would like to see that happen "soon."
Fourth Ward Council Member Bruce Lockett, who was in attendance, said he was pleased with Depaul's presentation.
"I think it's good and worth pursuing," he said. "There are enough possibilities and opportunities out there with them that I think the mayor's onto something. Depaul has it together."
Depaul's proposal states that the nonprofit's operation in the United States has been in existence for 13 years and includes eight states. Across the globe, Depaul operates in six countries, with a presence in war-torn Ukraine, Levesque said.
The guiding principles under which Depaul operates were set forth by St. Vincent de Paul, who devoted his life to the poor, sick and needy, and by St. Louise de Marillac, who, with de Paul, was the cofounder of the Daughters of Charity.