Oklahoma City to house at least 37 homeless veterans in renovated living center
Oklahoma City, with the help of the VA and the OKC Housing Authority, has finalized plans to house 37 homeless veterans in a renovated assisted living center
Oklahoma City, with the help of the VA and the OKC Housing Authority, has finalized plans to house 37 homeless veterans in a renovated assisted living center
Oklahoma City, with the help of the VA and the OKC Housing Authority, has finalized plans to house 37 homeless veterans in a renovated assisted living center
Oklahoma City has finalized plans to house 37 homeless veterans in a renovated assisted living center, with the help of the Department of Veterans Affairs and the OKC Housing Authority.
The project to build a new living center for these veterans has already been funded, and Tuesday marked the final approval. In the next few months, the veterans will be moving in, and the Oklahoma City Housing Authority said this is a unique fix for veterans on the street.
"It's not a construction project. That's the real advantage here, this time around," said Greg Shinn, of the OKC Housing Authority. "The other projects we have have taken much longer to deliver because they're much heavier on the construction side."
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The Dorset Place Community, which used to be an assisted living center, will now be a home for 37 veterans who were living on the street.
"It could be more. They could have a child. They could have a spouse. There could be more than just 37, but they'll be able to allocate 37 vouchers for veteran households," Shinn said.
The city and the OKC Housing Authority have already put the money in to renovate and update the building.
"It was really just mostly cosmetic to bring the building up to the acceptable standards," Shinn said.
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The VA's voucher program provides everything the veterans need to live in the community, including services that come to them.
"We will be having the services onsite, five days a week, Monday through Friday," Shinn said.
The OKC Housing Authority says having people who served our country without a home is a problem they are hoping to solve, and this is a step in the right direction.
"We're going to put a significant dent in the number of homeless veterans that are in Oklahoma City right now," Shinn said.
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The OKC Housing Authority said they don't have an exact date, but those veterans will be living there in just a few more months.
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