(The Center Square) – The city of Spokane approved the final contract extension for its largest congregate homeless shelter last week, but now the Trent Shelter might not close for good on Halloween after all.
The Trent Resource and Assistance Center, or Trent Shelter, opened two years ago and could sleep roughly 450 people as recently as January, though not anymore. Mayor Lisa Brown prioritized closing the facility and transitioning away from that model when taking office this year.
Brown wants to limit the use of the congregate model and transition toward scattered site shelters. When the city council approved the final extension, operational costs surpassed $16.8 million , with the expectation that the shelter would close by Oct. 31, but now it might stay open.
Arielle Anderson, director of the Community, Housing and Human Services Department, said Thursday that the provider might ask to keep it open as needed for inclement weather.
“I can’t control who responds to an RFI ,” Anderson said. “I do want to say that this is not establishing a contractual relationship at all; it was just trying to get a sense of what was out there.”