UPDATE: Warner Robins, church partner to open warming shelter
The City of Warner Robins announced Monday a “significant partnership” with No Limit Baptist Church to address the needs of the homeless during frigid nights.
ORIGINAL STORY (11/8):
WARNER ROBINS, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – The City of Warner Robins is urgently seeking a space where homeless people can take shelter from freezing temperatures.
With the winter months fast approaching, it’s critical that people have a warm place to lay their heads at night, but the need for such shelter grows more urgent as city officials search for a space for homeless citizens.
According to Mayor LaRhonda Patrick, the deadline to find a shelter has already passed.
“The reality is we don’t have an option right now, but we are aggressively looking for one,” Mayor Patrick explained. “The cold days are on their way in Georgia. The cold days might start next week. I don’t know.”
In previous years, the city partnered with The Table at First Christian Church, where homeless people could spend the night and get a warm meal. But according to Pastor Jordan Williams, the church is no longer able to provide the space due to a lack of funding and volunteers.
Mayor Patrick says it was a huge undertaking.
“The city came in and we provided support, the community came in and they provided support, so it ran pretty smoothly,” she said. “But we respect their decision to say that they’re not able to do it this year, because that is a task of its own.”
That’s why earlier this year, the city purchased a property to be renovated for a dedicated homeless shelter, but Mayor Patrick says plans to open the shelter in December were delayed when contaminants were found in the building.
“We can’t have individuals in a building that may have contaminants,” she explained. “So we’ve got to do the proper due diligence and the remediation to make sure it is safe before we put in the money to renovate.”
Now, the city is asking for help from the community to provide an emergency shelter.
Mayor Patrick says the space needs to be large enough to house 40 people and come equipped with showers, bathrooms and a kitchen approved by the Department of Public Health.
She says the city hopes to find a shelter by the end of November.
“We’re looking to see if there are any other partners out there that may have the space or may have the heart to try to help our neighbors with allowing a warming space, meaning a check in at night, in the evening, and check out in the morning or whatever it is they can do to help,” she said.
If you are able to provide a space for shelter, contact Warner Robins Code Enforcement Officer Brian Wise at bwise@wrga.gov or call (478) 538-5115.
