MISSOULA — Missoula leaders gave an update on two troublesome issues that are tied together on Tuesday -- homelessness and the housing projects underway to address it.
The Poverello Center would offer monthly tours of their facility to keep the public updated on their work under normal circumstances, but those monthly tours have turned virtual, and on Tuesday, an online audience received an update on what the Pov has been up to.
MTN News has brought you numerous stories on the Temporary Safe Outdoor Spaces (TSOS) and Poverello leadership says they’ve seen a consistent 25 individuals taking advantage of the space since its launch.
Ground was broken earlier this summer on a new housing initiative -- the Trinity Project, which will develop over 200 units of affordable housing once it's complete. Similarly, Missoula’s northside will see another 200-plus units of affordable housing in the Villagio Project.
These are just a few of the outcomes being seen on Missoula’s housing front in the last year. Missoula housing leaders acknowledged that there’s even more happening behind the scenes that the public doesn’t see.
“I'm most proud of is just how many families and people who are experiencing homelessness are unhoused and were supported and then a variety of ways,” noted Affordable Housing Trust Fund administrator Emily Harris-Shears.
“And that includes people being supported in their housing by being preserved by housing being rehabilitated by people being supported through their experiences with COVID and being supported with housing during needing to be isolated, like any isolation support, and emergency shelter support, and a variety of other names that the emergency funding our department receives.”
Another noteworthy announcement from Tuesday’s update, Missoula County’s newly hired housing specialist is in the process of developing an affordable housing strategy for the county. Those recommendations will be presented to the public on Sept. 20.
