A second permanent supportive housing shelter is coming to Asheville by way of the Ramada Inn on 148 River Ford Pkwy.

At its Dec. 14 meeting, Asheville City Council voted 6-1 to pivot from its initial plan to build a low-barrier emergency shelter and instead pursue a 100-unit permanent supportive housing project with the support of two California-based organizations.

Since this project has had its fair share of twists and turns, let’s break down exactly what this decision means for Asheville and how this will impact our unhoused community.

First off, what is “permanent supportive housing"?

It’s a combination of long termaffordable housing + support services for folks who face chronic homelessness and grapple with disabilities such as severe mental health, substance use disorders + physical illness.

In order to qualify, people must also be 18+ years old and make below 50% of the area median income, which is income below ~$26,300.

Do any local entities currently offer this model?

Nonprofit Homeward Bound has used this approach to work with 200+ households and has seen an 89% retention rate. The org is also developing the city’s first permanent supportive housing shelter, which is slated to start accepting residents in 2022.

Why will Ramada Inn no longer become a low-barrier shelter?

TLDR; the cost. After crunching the numbers, the cost of establishing the low-barrier shelter was estimated to cost over $24 million initially, not to mention annual operational costs of ~$3 million.

While the City has said it’s still very much interested in a low-barrier shelter, it will need to reassess its plan with other funding partners at a later date.

Project timeline and other details

The new owner of the property will be California developer Shangri-La Industries + the project will be managed by nonprofit Step Up on Second Street Inc. City Council has agreed to provide Step Up with an initial $1.5 million in funding.

It’s estimated that Shangri-La will close on the property in early 2022 and occupancy will begin in late 2022.