With the leaves starting to turn and drop, and the weather getting colder, the Island’s only shelter for the unhoused officially opened its doors at its new location.
On Saturday morning, volunteers set up the temporary winter shelter on New York Avenue in Oak Bluffs — arranging beds, collecting first-aid supplies, and setting out snack bowls. As they attended the space, those who spend their time helping out at the nonprofit Harbor Homes estimated that 340 people are without stable housing when the fall weather hits.
“Their first worry is: ‘Where am I gonna sleep tonight?’” Harbor Homes volunteer and nurse practitioner Janet Constantino said as she busied herself setting up for the winter shelter’s first night open. “The basic need is safety.”
“The weather’s definitely starting to turn, so it’s a good thing we’re opening,” staff supervisor Madeline Scott added as she laminated posters with information about services available to unhoused individuals to post on the doors of the building.
The new location for the Harbor Homes shelter is temporary. The nonprofit has reorganized the New York Ave. building, what was transitional housing for low-income women previously. Most of the furniture has been moved into storage, the basement turned into a group dining space with round tables, a T.V., and snacks, and 25 cots have been moved into the first floor.
Inside the shelter, half of the cots — which are made of wire bed frames and foam toppers — are set up just inside the front door, on hardwood floors near a brick fireplace. Volunteers said men will sleep in that area of the home. The women’s area is behind a closed door with their own private bathroom access.
Anyone who stays at the shelter has the option to take a shower, eat breakfast and dinner provided by volunteers, and get some laundry done. According to shelter director Lisa Belcastro, many of the people who stay at the Harbor Homes shelter work jobs in the daytime, and having a place to tend to their basic needs is crucial.
With rental prices at an all-time high — at an estimated average by the Martha’s Vineyard Commission of $3,000 a month for a one-bedroom apartment — and median home-buying prices at $1.5 million, locals across the Vineyard have cited difficulty with meeting their housing needs.
In the summer, those who are completely without lodging are on their own, and most live in tents outside, according to Harbor Homes staff. They said there are many people who continue living in those tents, even when temperatures fall below freezing.
The nonprofit was started in 2013 by creating shelter spaces in numerous churches following the hypothermic death of an unhoused person who was sleeping outside in the winter months. The shelter was then moved to Martha’s Vineyard Community Services, where their tenure had an end-date, with Community Services demolishing the space and building new.
Harbor Homes staff have tried to find a permanent location for a year-round space, but have gotten pushback from community members — mainly from abutters of possible shelter locations — and have faced roadblocks through zoning and wastewater. In the past five years, multiple locations have fallen through.
After getting the location at 111 New York Ave. re-zoned this fall, Belcastro said, she was excited to officially open the doors on Nov. 1. The number of people utilizing the shelter so far was not disclosed by Harbor Homes staff.
“The nights are getting colder, and it’s wonderful to know our Island neighbors have a warm and welcoming place to stay,” Belcastro said. “I’m grateful the shelter is open.”
Sarah, we would love updates on how the shelter does over the winter months. Tax payers may feel better about where their money goes if we know the # of people actually using it as well as any concerns. Thank you.
Hi Amy, your concern for our unhoused neighbors is heartwarming, especially since many of them are employed, and as such, taxpayers. Harbor Homes is a 501(c)3 non-profit since 2018, not a government funded organization. Why not reach out to them directly to find out more about them and how they allocate their resources – or maybe even learn how to help? Here is a link to their site: https://www.harborhomesmv.com.
Thank you Jane, I’ve served on the OB C.P.A. Committee and understand the HH mission. I’ve only spoken up about this particular temporary change of use because the use of this home was promised as a woman’s shelter for emergency and transitional safe space for women ( HH has a men’s house in VH as well) hopefully it’s just this winter and the women can move back in by spring. I also understand there’s a building being purchased in VH for a future shelter, Nothing wrong with a taxpayer asking for a little more information on a financial question that comes up at every annual town meeting.
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