Community Groups Collaborate To House Homeless Amid Coronavirus

EVANSTON, IL — Community groups and city officials have partnered to expand their capacity to shelter people without housing in Evanston during the coronavirus pandemic.

Dozens of additional beds and hotel rooms were secured this week to house homeless people, one aldermen donated the use of a house as an emergency shelter, and a local church has opened up its social hall to allow for up to 30 additional beds, according to representatives of Evanston nonprofit Connections for the Homeless.

Gov. JB Pritzker's statewide stay-at-home executive order that took effect this week does not apply to people without housing, but it "strongly urges" governments and non-governmental organizations to make as much housing available as possible.

People experiencing homelessness are strongly urged to seek such shelter to reduce the potential spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new strain of the coronavirus that has killed 16 people in Illinois out of more than 1,500 confirmed infections.

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In Evanston, services for the homeless community began to be disrupted by the spread of the virus even before the order. Public libraries closed March 13, and after the the governor ordered a stop to sit-down service at all restaurants and bars in the state and Mayor Steve Hagerty declared a local state of emergency on March 15, Interfaith Action of Evanston hosted its last night of an emergency overnight shelter at First United Methodist Church.

Nia Tavoularis, director of development for Connections for the Homeless, said local nonprofits outlined the needs of the homeless population within a day of the formation of a local COVID-19 task force, which includes representatives of public and private sector groups.

"Our first request to the city was that they do three things," Tavoularis said. "That they give us expanded emergency shelter capacity, that they put out handwashing stations and port-o-potties because all of the daytime service providers had to significantly reduce or close down services, and that they give us access to motel and hotel rooms."

Connections adjusted its operations to convert its 18-bed, men-only transitional shelter in the basement of Lake Street Church to provide 24-hour housing, moving its daytime drop-in services to its administrative offices at 2121 Dewey Ave.

Ald. Robin Rue Simmons, 5th Ward, approached the group the next day to offer the temporary use of a single-family home on Asbury Avenue she had recently purchased as a rental property, Tavoularis recalled.

"[Simmons] was like, 'I've got this property can you guys do something with it, can we at least use it to shelter women?' And so that's when we were like, 'Yes, we will make a way to do that,'" she said. "She was working on that over the weekend, and she got the community behind it even more and they were like, 'We're going to do this, we're going to put this property online."

The alderman's house will be used as an emergency shelter for a small population of women, according to Connections.

Simmons said all she did was get the house functional and safe and have 5th Ward business Dial-a-Maid clean it. Community members donated things needed to put it together, such as blankets, towels, paper goods, soap and snacks, she said.

"I'm incredibly proud of the leadership of Lisa Laude and countless residents that have advocated for and donated in support of our Homeless neighbors," Simmons told Patch. "Betty Bogg and the team at Connections partnered with other committed service providers and our dedicated City staff responded to the needs of neighbors most in need and this is an example of who we are collectively in Evanston. This was an 'all hands on deck' effort and I am grateful to play a small role."

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Leaders at Lake Street Church, at 607 Lake St., offered the use of the church's MacLeish Hall as a temporary emergency shelter. Its 25 to 30 beds are set to be offered on a first-come, first-serve basis starting Wednesday. Tavoularis said Connections projected the shelter would be full.

Meanwhile, city officials secured a block of 40 rooms at an Evanston hotel. They include single, double and family rooms, according to Tavoularis. The first people began moving into the rooms on Monday. She said they included families fleeing domestic violence and others in need identified by the YWCA and Interfaith Action.

"All of that is really, I think, a function of that energy that came from this group of community members who were literally stomping their feet and stomping their keyboards and saying, 'What is happening? What are we doing in the community how are we serving his population?'" Tavoularis said. "Other people may say, 'Oh no, it was always going to happen,' but it really, really got going over the weekend."

Evanston Communications Manager Patrick Deignan did not immediately respond to a request for information about whether the city planned to secure more hotel rooms in the future. On Monday he said city staff expected plans to coordinate temporary housing to be finalized early this week.

"The robust collaboration between Evanston leaders and demand for action from community members is leading to a sustainable solution with hotel stays and a safety net of emergency shelter for our most vulnerable neighbors during this health crisis," Betty Bogg, executive director of Connections for the Homeless, said in a statement.

Connections collaborated with Evanston Community Foundation, Interfaith Action Evanston, YWCA Evanston/North Shore, Lake Street Church and Curt's Café in the effort. The nonprofit needs about 11 volunteers a day to keep its operations going, according to Tavoularis, the nonprofit's development director. She said Connections is hiring a nurse and mental health professional, and there would be a forthcoming request for volunteers who have worked with homeless people before, including those with experience in soup kitchens or emergency overnight shelters.