Homeless shelter in Portage County plans to open in 2019

Executive Director of The Haven of Portage County, Anne Marie Noble and Kent City Council member Gwen Rosenberg talk about the new shelter. 

 

There is currently one shelter for both men and women to spend the night in Portage County, according to The Haven of Portage County. The Miller House located in Kent can provide housing for 22 individuals. 

“There’s an absolute need for more shelter space for homeless people and families and there’s a number of different reasons why we don’t have more,” said Gwen Rosenberg, a member of the Kent City Council. “Some of those reasons are more complicated than others.”

Those reasons include both finances and finding space to build a shelter.

In Kent and Ravenna alone, there are more than 100 people who are considered homeless. Unlike the city of Akron, Kent does not have an area similar to “Tent City.” Homeless people may be living behind Walmart or other public places, according to the Haven of Portage County.

“It is hard to define if a person is actually homeless,” says Rosenberg. People who sleep at different houses each night may not be considered homeless since they have a place to stay. 

One reason in the lack of shelters that provide services for both men and women is safety. 

“Safety is a priority. You would have to provide for the safety and security of everyone who is staying in the shelter,” said Rosenberg. 

 

A map with some services for those in need in the county.

 

The Haven of Portage County is hoping to open in fall of 2019. The shelter will provide services and a place to say for men, women and children. It will be located in Ravenna on State Route 59 across from Walmart.

“Well, not only will it be a warm bed. But we can also assist individuals with getting resources such as food stamps, state ID cards and we also have a partnership with Coleman Professional,” said Anne Marie Nobel, Executive Director of the Haven of Portage County.

The shelter will also have a partnership with job and family services to help individuals look for a job and plan their future.

Nobel has been helping the homeless find shelter for a while. Five years ago, a mother, her two children and their pet guinea pig were looking for a place to stay after she lost her job. The mother told the volunteer at a warming shelter that she could not look at her kids anymore; after spending many nights in the car.

“She said I was planning on driving the car to to West Branch and driving them into the lake,” said Nobel.

This moment was when Nobel and other volunteers realized Portage County needs more than one shelter. The Haven of Portage County is not going to limit how long someone can stay at the shelter. Nobel believes it is important to continue to support and provide for those in need to help them succeed in the future – even if it takes longer than the standard 30 days most shelters allow. The shelter will have a men’s overnight area, a women’s overnight area, a family overnight area, a shower/laundry area, a kitchen, storage space and a common area.

Nobel says the new shelter’s mission will be to help the homeless in different ways including: physically, intellectually and spiritually. 

“Not only are we saving families, but we’re saving lives,” said Nobel.