St. Vinnie's housing staying open

COEUR d’ALENE — Contrary to rumors, St. Vincent de Paul North Idaho is not closing transitional housing facilities due to lack of federal funding.

Instead, executive director Jeff Conroy said, the organization is putting federal funds into a different housing model that will soon become a nationwide standard.

“We’re just trying to stay ahead of the curve and do it now,” Conroy told The Press Thursday.

From 2009 until 2012, St. Vincent de Paul received $856,000 in federal funding to help combat homelessness in the region through transitional housing. In 2015, Conroy said the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development would shift resources away from multi-unit, transitional housing toward permanent, long-term housing.

Conroy said the organization had previously utilized both forms of housing, but statistics found it was cheaper and more effective to place people in permanent housing.

“You’re taking people out of a group home setting and putting them into their own personal home or apartment where they can be an actual family,” Conroy said. “It gives them a sense of dignity and respect they otherwise wouldn’t experience during this time of their lives.”

St. Vincent de Paul North Idaho, Conroy said, already has 33 individuals in homes and apartments across the region through its “Angel Arms for Families” program. A recent decision by the organization’s board, according to Conroy, will change its federal grant funding from multi-client housing to a transitional housing program.

The updated housing program, he added, will be implemented in November and still provides families with case management and other services.

“Systemizing people is not something we want to do,” Conroy said. “We want to provide them with the help and resources they need as quickly as possible.”

Those with additional questions on the decision are encouraged to contact Conroy at (208) 664-3095.