A 41-unit permanent housing facility intended for homeless people still does not have an opening date, according to a report from Bangor’s homelessness response manager at a recent City Council workshop.
However, the project recently obtained a certificate of occupancy, which was “one of the biggest hurdles facing this project up until now,” according to Jena Jones, the city’s homelessness response manager.
With that step now complete, the project is “in the home stretch,” she said, although she reported that Penquis was still hesitant to announce a specific opening date.
It’s the latest update in a housing project that Penquis CAP, a local nonprofit, initially planned to open by the end of 2024. Bangor delayed closing the city’s largest homeless encampment, often referred to as Tent City, by two months in hopes that some of its residents would be able to move into the building. It’s now been five months since the ribbon-cutting ceremony and no one is living there.
The housing project, located at the former Pine Tree Inn at 22 Cleveland St., has faced extensive construction delays. The finishing touches on the building are nearly complete, Jones said, and could be done by next week.
MaineHousing still needs to inspect the building and approve the applications that have been selected by Housing Foundation, the Orono-based affordable housing organization that will serve as the building’s property manager.
Housing Foundation has submitted 19 applications for approval by MaineHousing, Jones said. 85 people had applied for one of the 41 units as of March of this year.
It’s unclear if any of the 19 approved applicants lived in the encampment before it was closed by the city. Penquis Community Relations Manager Renae Muscatell was unable to provide that information before publication.
Anyone who either has no housing or very unstable housing is eligible to apply, according to Muscatell.
The city has submitted a request with MaineHousing to expedite the building inspection in hopes that these 19 people can move in as soon as possible, Jones said.
“We’re going to be very aggressive in seeing how we can use our influence to hopefully make things go as quickly as possible, understanding that it’s not necessarily in our control,” City Manager Carollynn Lear said in Monday’s meeting.
Jones described a challenging application process for potential residents, saying it has taken a “considerable amount of work” to apply. The Housing Foundation’s vetting process looks for a clean rental history and references, she said — things that people who have experienced homelessness, the population the project was supposed to serve, often do not have.
While Jones said she still expects some chronically homeless applicants will likely be approved, she added that many people who had hoped to apply “are feeling a pretty significant sense of frustration,” as are the workers who are helping them.
The support available at Theresa’s Place has been reduced from the “wraparound” services initially planned.
“This project isn’t necessarily as robust as we were hoping that it was going to be for the population that we’re trying to serve,” Jones said.
The building will offer support such as life skills and employment services, and connections to case management. It will not provide the all-day support and treatment services that would have been instrumental in helping people — who may also struggle with substance use or mental illness — transition out of homelessness.
“It’s not as comprehensive as we would have preferred, but those are 41 units that are going to come online soon and meet some real needs,” Jones said.