 - The Riverton City Council has decided to allocate $10,000 of its remaining half percent sales tax funding for economic development to the new Riverton’s Mercy House homeless shelter effort.){kind=link}
(Riverton, WY) – The Riverton City Council has decided to allocate $10,000 of its remaining half percent sales tax funding for economic development to the new Riverton’s Mercy House homeless shelter effort.
The rest of the sales tax income – an estimated $310,000 – will go to support commercial air service at Central Wyoming Regional Airport.
The council had considered allocating some of the money to the Wind River Transportation Authority too, but WRTA Director Tim Nichols withdrew his request for $186,000 in economic development support during this week’s council meeting, citing the “severe funding gap” the airport is facing.
“The airport needs (to be) prioritized,” Nichols said, explaining that, while “WRTA has a few opportunities to scale back” its operations, “the airport doesn’t have that luxury.”
Mercy House
It was Councilmember Karen Johnson who proposed allocating some of the half percent sales tax money to Riverton’s Mercy House this week, initially suggesting that “at least $100,000” go to support the planned homeless shelter.
The Mercy House supports economic development, Johnson noted, because “unless we clean up our community and what we see on the streets, we’re not going to see a whole lot of economic growth.”
“People don’t want to come here and open businesses when they’re being accosted and harassed,” she said. “We have got to clean that up, and the Mercy House is offering a solution to that.”
Plus, Johnson added, “winter is upon us, and there are people out there currently that don’t have a place to go.”
The Riverton Police Department has been working with local organizations to provide unhoused individuals with rides to the Warming Huts south of town this winter, but that service is “transportation-dependent” and “space-limited,” Mayor Tim Hancock said, turning to the Mercy House organizers in attendance at this week’s meeting to ask them how “quickly” they might be able to open their new shelter this year.
“If we were to receive funding … we could potentially very likely open as early as Feb. 1,” Mercy House Board Chair Grace Andrus said, explaining that, of the two buildings Eagles Hope Transitions has donated to Mercy House, “the smaller one is available for almost immediate move-in” and “could potentially house about 26 individuals” after “(we) do a little bit of work on it.”
“We do need to do some repairs on the smaller unit to make it usable for (a shelter),” Andrus said. “We have to separate the unit into two sides – one for male one for female – (with) a neutral area where staff can be.”
Mercy House plans to hire nine people to staff the shelter when it first opens, she said, with a tenth employee anticipated “a little bit later down the road as the other building is ready.”
A private citizen has offered to “get us started with wages,” Mercy House Board Treasurer Rowena Bland noted, prompting Council Member Rebecca Pierson-Lewis to ask whether that funding was “sustainable,” and if it was available “now to open Feb. 1 to hire those people.”
“We cannot at this point because we can’t put anyone in the building yet,” Andrus replied. “But if the funds were available immediately, our goal would be (to open) as close to Feb. 1 as possible. We don’t actually get the property until then.”
Hancock noted that the half percent sales tax funding likely won’t be distributed until after the council approves an official agreement with Mercy House, but Bland said even a commitment of funding would be beneficial, as the organization is also applying for additional grant awards, and “if we don’t have any committed funds coming, it’s hard to get more committed funds coming.”
“Can we establish some funding for the Mercy House so they can get started on their grant process (with) at least some committed funds?” Johnson asked, revising her initial suggestion for the allocation down to $10,000. “We need to take steps forward to get this established, and even if it’s a small amount, it gives them something to work with.”
City staff said Riverton’s economic development fund currently holds about $66,000.
For more information, call the City of Riverton at (307) 856-2227.