May 02, 2008 11:07 pm
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By Greg Grisolano
ggrisolano@joplinglobe.com
Melissa Randolph says she is praying that she won’t have to sleep on the streets very long.
“I don’t know, I’ll have to just pitch a tent in the back or sleep where I can,” said Randolph, who has been staying at a homeless shelter whose grace period is about to come to an end.
About 30 other people have been staying at the refuge also most likely will be seeking a new place to stay now that the 60-day window to continue the shelter operations is coming to a close.
Joplin’s city attorney said the cease-and-desist order applies to the shelter aspect of City of Refuge only, and the other services offered there, including a food pantry and church, will not be ordered shut down.
“We’re not going to start kicking people into the street,” City Attorney Brian Head said. “What will happen is that Sunday morning, we’ll go see if there are still people sheltering down there. If there are, we’ll issue a notice of violation.”
Head said the 60-day window will close at midnight tonight.
“There’s no desire to come down hard on folks who find themselves homeless, but there are a lot of concerns about protection of life safety in that facility,” he said. “Ultimately we need to move forward with this location ceasing to be a shelter.”
The City Council will consider a motion to grant an extension of time to Dan Anderson, the founder and pastor of City of Refuge, according to Joplin Mayor Gary Shaw.
Anderson could not be reached via phone or at City of Refuge for comment Friday.
Shaw, who serves as a vice president of Central Christian Center, said he supports the group’s mission, but is concerned about the city’s liability in the event of an accident.
“I’m sympathetic to their mission,” he said.
Anderson has been looking for a new home for his ministry since the City Council voted 5-3 in March to deny City of Refuge a change in zoning that would have allowed it to try to convert its leased quarters in an old warehouse at 502 E. Seventh St. into a shelter. The building was cited for numerous fire, health and zoning violations in January.
The city’s Planning and Zoning Commission had recommended that the council deny a change in zoning to accommodate a shelter in the former warehouse, and operators of businesses in the area had objected to a shelter conversion.
City building inspector Steve Cope said city officials have been inspecting the location biweekly since March.
Shaw said the city is proceeding with plans for a summit to consider the problem of homelessness in Joplin. A local survey conducted earlier this year indicated that between 500 and 600 people are homeless in the Joplin area.
Shaw said the city has contacted numerous local agencies that provide services and support for the homeless, and is requesting information, including a mission statement and figures on the number of people served, to be compiled for the summit. No date for the meeting has been set.
Finding a bed at another shelter may not be an easy task, either.
As of Friday night, the mission at Souls Harbor, 912 S. Main, had only two beds left.
Ted Londo, an employee at Souls Harbor, said the shelter distributes its beds on a first-come, first-served basis.
“We don’t reserve beds for anybody,” he said. “We’ve got two in there right now, but that could change in an hour.”
The Salvation Army Family Life Center, 320 E. Eighth, said its shelter was at capacity.
“We have eight families, and we’re full, running over,” said Ellen Morris, an employee at the center. “We’re just right at the brim.”
Some of the residents interviewed said they plan to make temporary homes in tents, beneath bridges, or in cars while the situation is sorted out.
“The only thing I can think of is to cash in what aluminum cans I got and hopefully have enough to buy a two-person tent,” said Jeffrey Keyser, who has been staying with his wife, Maxine, at City of Refuge since the ice storms in January. “Then find some wooded, somewhat secluded area to put it up in.”
Jeffrey Keyser said he has a seizure disorder that makes it difficult for him to find work. He said he and his wife lost their home in Joplin last year when their landlord died, and the new owner decided not to rent the property.
“Sixty days is such a short period of time,” Maxine Keyser said. “We don’t have a lot of options.”
A proposal is on the table from Anderson to purchase the First Baptist Church building at 633 S. Pearl Ave. for $600,000. That church’s congregation is scheduled to vote on the sale during a meeting on Wednesday.
Petition circulating
A group of residents and downtown business owners has been circulating a petition to oppose the sale of the First Baptist Church building for use as a shelter, asserting that a shelter for the homeless would threaten public safety and thwart economic revitalization in the downtown area.
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