Maine’s shelters that help the most vulnerable homeless people are facing a money problem that could force one important shelter in Bangor to close.
People from these shelters talked to the Maine Legislature’s Joint Select Committee on Housing to ask for better funding. These shelters are called low-barrier shelters because they don’t check backgrounds, credit, income, program history, sobriety, or ask for identification.
These low-barrier shelters in the state have a combined yearly loss of about $4.1 million.
One of the shelters in trouble is the Hope House Health and Living Center in Bangor, run by Penobscot Community Health Care (PCHC). Last month, PCHC said it needs a new owner to take over the shelter because they can’t afford to run it anymore.
Hope House’s shelter part is expected to lose over $600,000 by the end of this year and more than $800,000 next year. If they can’t find a new owner, the shelter will close in October 2024, removing 44 dorm beds and 12 overflow mats.
Bangor has two low-barrier shelters — Bangor Area Homeless Shelter and Hope House Health and Living Center. However, Bangor Area Homeless Shelter requires guests to be sober.
Other low-barrier shelters in the state include Mid-Maine Homeless Shelter in Waterville and three in Portland: Milestone Recovery, Elena’s Way Wellness Shelter, and Florence House.
These shelters struggle because they lack specific funds and providing intensive services costs a lot, needing more staff. It’s also hard to fill funding gaps through private fundraising.
Since low-barrier shelters don’t have many requirements for help, their guests are usually people who can’t go to other shelters and would otherwise be living outside, according to Mark Swann, Executive Director of Preble Street in Portland.
