BREAKING GROUND ON MORE TEMPORARY HOUSING

By Marisol Saldivar

St. Vincent de Paul’s footprint will grow a little larger this year. The nonprofi t held a groundbreaking ceremony May 2 with construction set to begin later this summer on a new building that will expand its main campus just east while also growing SVdP’s role and impact in the rehousing arena for a crucial population increasingly experiencing homelessness.

Seniors, veterans and adults with disabilities without housing and a safety net will have an additional 100 beds at SVdP as the new 50,000-square-foot building fi rst looks to expand the success of the nonprofi t’s existing transitional housing program, Ozanam Manor.

Nicknamed “Oz,” the program currently has 60 beds in the Diane and Bruce Halle Center for Hope and Healing on SVdP’s main campus and boasts a high success rate with 95% of graduated residents remaining housed and not returning to homelessness services six months after moving out.

“For many years, we have seen the increase of seniors experiencing homelessness,” SVdP Ozanam Manor Director Julia Matthies says. “They are disproportionately affected by the housing crisis because they are more often on fi xed incomes. They have fewer options and tend to have more medical and physical health needs, making them more vulnerable.”

The new addition, referred to as Ozanam Manor II, or Oz II, is a $20-million project made possible by city, county and state funding as well as private donations. It is the second phase of capital improvements for SVdP after the building of the Diane and Bruce Halle Center for Hope and Healing and the creation of the Rob & Melani Walton Urban Farm in 2018. The expansion of the Virginia G. Piper Medical and Dental Clinic followed in 2019.

Oz II will more than double transitional housing capacity on SVdP’s campus while also bringing added services with a new companion animal clinic and dedicated space for workforce readiness programming.

Ozanam Manor II will…

· Build a 50,000 sq. ft. new facility, informed by the successes of the original Ozanam Manor housed within the Diane and Bruce Halle Center for Hope and Healing (completed in 2018)

· Provide 100 beds for unhoused elderly, veterans, and adults with disabilities

· Expand case management programming for successful transitions

· Engage men and women who have been reluctant to access services by removing barriers

· Operate a 3,000 sq. ft. veterinary clinic for SVdP’s Companion Animal Program, run in partnership with Midwestern University’s Animal Health Institute to attract men and women whose pets have made it diffi cult for them to access services

· Grow SVdP’s Workforce Opportunities Program to engage men and women in developing work and life skills in positive steps toward sustainability

Julia Matthies Ozanam Manor Director

“We are grateful and thrilled to have this opportunity to expand on the success of the original Ozanam Manor model. But we’re also dreaming bigger and creating space to broaden services and invite partnerships and the community into serving residents in more ways. We’re hoping that means we can open our doors a little wider and take in residents who need flexibility with pets or might have greater health needs.”

Alberto Diaz Companion Animal Program Manager

“We are so excited to have an animal clinic right on campus, making access easy for our guests and their pets. Care for the animals is also care for our guests. So many guests will not leave their pets behind to seek shelter. Their animals are their family and often only connection. So as SVdP welcomes animals inside, we are ecstatic to also have the space and services to care for companion animals and keep people and their pets safe, together, and cared for.”

Lindsay Brown Workforce Opportunities Program Manager

“The workforce headquarters is going to give our guests the necessary support to prepare for and enter employment by giving them access to technology, skills training, case management, life-tools classes and more. This space will mean so much to our guests and their chances at creating better, more sustainable lives for themselves.”

The blueprint of the new building details a welcome area just inside the double door entry on the lower level, where guests with accessibility needs will have dorms and easy access to the workforce development and veterinary clinic. The upper level will offer additional dormitory wings and common areas.