Residents oppose location of proposed homeless shelter in Ottawa

Of three public hearings seeking comment on grant applications made by the city of Ottawa on Tuesday, the one regarding the construction of a homeless shelter in a residential neighborhood drew the most concern from the almost full gallery of spectators.

And it turns out that concern involves another of the hearings, as well.

The Ottawa City Council is seeking a Community Development Block Grant that, through the Coronavirus Rural Shelter Program, could provide up to $2 million to assist it and the Illinois Valley Public Action to Deliver Shelter in the construction of a 12,000-square-foot homeless shelter that would be located at a city-owned property at 429 W. Lafayette St.

That happens to be the location discussed at a previous Tuesday hearing – the application for a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Brownfields remediation grant of contaminated soil.

The concerned residents attending Tuesday’s hearing did not voice their opinion against the shelter itself, just its location in the heart of a residential neighborhood about two blocks from the existing, much smaller PADS shelter.

“I’m a mother first, and everything else falls behind that, so that’s the thing I’m most concerned with,” said Justine Larabee, spokesperson for the group and creator of a petition containing 97 signatures against that site. “Obviously, there are safety and environment issues. Having a 9- and 17-year-old and being in the proximity to the existing homeless shelter as it is, we’ve been up against a lot with the homelessness in our alley and in our neighborhood.

“The other part of this is that a property on the north side of town would partner the homeless with stronger resources for them … for locations that support mental health and recovery, for job opportunities, for food and shopping options. The north side would be a better place for that … any nonresidential area would be better.”

Larabee added that North Central Area Transit would provide low-cost transportation to and from jobs at local restaurants, warehouses, grocery and department stores.

Ottawa Mayor Robb Hasty explained that the location was chosen by the PADS board of directors primarily because of its proximity to the current homeless shelter – a 55-bed facility located at 1120 Canal St. – and other facilities it enlists to provide for its clients, and in part because it already is city-owned.

Blair Krickl, a project manager with the North Central Illinois Council of Governments, said that other sites were considered, including one on the north side of Interstate 80, but that was eliminated because of a lack of city water and sewer access.

She added that of all the considered sites, the West Lafayette Street address was the “most feasible” for the new facility, which would provide for 115 people men’s and women’s dorms, four regular and two large family rooms, a living area and community dining room.

There also would be a family isolation room, a single isolation room, a classroom, an indoor play area, a laundry room, a community kitchen, a pantry, shower rooms and a donated clothes closet.

For the staff, it would provide a main office and reception area, caseworker offices, an employee entrance and lockers, and mechanical and storage rooms.

The funds requested would come from the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and provide the lion’s share of the project’s estimated $4.36 million cost. The remainder would come from the nonprofit PADS through donations it has banked and a loan already approved and verified.

Krickl said the site as it is listed on the grant application is locked in once it is submitted, and if the location changed, it would negate the application in all likelihood for another year.

The council approved of seeking the grant, but its submission is pending a positive verdict from the city’s planning commission, which will meet at 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. 28, at City Hall, 301 W. Madison St. If it votes to submit the grant application, it could be approved at the next City Council meeting Nov. 5.

“Our entire area is filled with the elderly and children, so it is a high priority for us,” Larabee said. “We will be there. We need to be heard.”