HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — The addition of two shelters for homeless people on the island is a step closer to reality, the Office of Homelessness and Poverty Prevention said, as work on the exterior of the Anigua shelter has begun and the purchase of the Tamuning shelter is closed.
“We are fixing the stairwells and … installing the gates. … So, we’re looking at another couple months to finish up on (Anigua),” OHAPP Director Rob San Agustin said during a meeting of the Guam Interagency Council on Homelessness.
With structural work almost complete, San Agustin said, OHAPP is looking at projects and programs that will work out of the Anigua shelter.
“I did finish a trip, and we’re looking at the adequate and the appropriate programs to put in those shelters or in that shelter,” San Agustin said.
The Anigua shelter is planned to serve as transitional housing, providing housing stability to women and children, according to OHAPP.
“We’re looking at women in recovery that have children in the foster care system that are able to reunify, but don’t have the housing to do so. This is going to be the goal of this shelter, … not only reunify with some program assistance of these families, but also to reduce the number of children that are in foster care. And that is going to be, I think, a very good program,” Lt. Gov. Josh Tenorio said.
With a shelter for women and children ready to set up shop in Anigua, Tenorio took the time to address the criminal element.
“We are going to make sure that there is no illicit activity near these facilities. And if you happen to be listening, and you’re doing things around these, you better get out of there because we’re not going to tolerate that. We’re looking for safe and secure places, especially for these women and children that are needing safe shelter,” Tenorio said.
According to the lieutenant governor, there is a multiagency effort to eliminate dangers surrounding the Anigua shelter.
“So, to the homeowners or the business owners (and) apartment building owners that have abandoned homes there that are unsafe, the government is going to be looking and making steps to make sure that they are safe,” he said. “We’re not interested in operating any services or facilities in places that are unsafe (and) that have criminal activity or there’s people (that) are trespassing on private property.”
Elizabeth Napoli, Guam Housing and Urban Renewal Authority executive director, confirmed that the recent acquisition of 198 Iriarte Street is complete and will serve as the drop-in or overnight shelter for homeless people.
“We’re going to have meetings with OHAPP to go over the (rehabilitation), what the rehab is going to entail for the purposes of the drop-in shelter. So we’re good to go as far as that is concerned, and we’re looking forward to making sure that, you know, everything starts happening so that we can open it as soon as possible,” Napoli said.
Tenorio explained why the Tamuning location was chosen to serve as a drop-in shelter.
“We know that we have a street homeless population that may not be eligible for … security housing. And we also know that we have a population that is resistant or have broken rules that some of the nonprofits have had. So the opportunity for the drop-in shelter is a safe place for those street homeless to be where, … hopefully, there’ll be some … mental health and public health intervention opportunities for treatment,” Tenorio said.
The vision for the Tamuning shelter is to offer “more intensive programming, so that we may be able to help and intervene on folks that may be having some crisis.” Tenorio said.
