CHARLOTTE, N.C. — There's a helpful new resource for people without a warm place to lay their heads as the weather starts to really dip at night and in the mornings.
A massive effort is helping to transform a hotel into an emergency shelter for families. Roof Above has purchased the 88-room hotel at the intersection of Clanton Road and I-77 to make sure many more people in the area can escape the cold.
The $12 million project could save lives as temperatures reach unbearable limits. The goal is to eventually transform the units into permanent housing for those in need.
According to the organization, each unit will include a renovated kitchen and have a support services wing.
“As the pandemic has created financial challenges for hotels and motels nationally, nonprofits like Roof Above are stepping in to buy facilities we can use for important public purposes – creating a win-win for everybody,” said Liz Clasen-Kelly, CEO of Roof Above. “The hotel is already equipped to serve as safe shelter to help the community through this winter, and by the end of 2021, we aim to bring these units online as permanent housing for 88 of our most vulnerable neighbors.”
The Cares Act, the Springs-Steen Foundation, the Duke Energy Foundation, and the Mic-Kibbon Family Foundation is helping to fund the project.
For more information about the project, visit Roof Above’s website.