HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) -- The Harrisburg City Council recently approved the sending of $1 million to two local homeless shelters.
Harrisburg City Council recently voted to approve moving $1 million to the Downtown Daily Bread and Christian Churches United, as part of the Bridge Housing program established with the city's American Rescue Plan funding.
The allocation was approved by a vote of 6-1, with Councilwoman Shemaine Daniels being the only dissenting vote. In a statement to abc27, Daniels said that she thought the funding was improper.
"The piece of legislation lumped the funds for Downtown Daily Break and Christian Churches United shelters with several other funding recategorizations and reassignments of federal funds that I do not believe were proper," the statement reads.
Moving forward, both of these shelters will receive $500,000 which will allow them to be open year-round as opposed to only being open during the winter months.
"This money will be able to help address our city’s growing unhoused population immediately,”
Mayor Wanda R.D. Williams said. “We realize not everyone wishes to have a roof over their head at night, but many do, and thanks to partners like Downtown Daily Bread and Christian Churches United who are doing tremendous work in our city every day, more people will have the opportunity to sleep safely and soundly.”
Mayor Wanda says the decision to fund these two shelters was made with the upcoming I-83 South Bridge project in mind. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation had previously stated that they would need the space where a large unhouse encampment currently resides.
“It has always been a hope of mine to be able to provide overnight shelter for our neighbors all
year round,” Corrie Lingenfelter, Executive Director at Downtown Daily Bread said. “This
opportunity to extend our overnight shelter to a year-round overnight shelter excites me, and it
would not have happened without the gracious support of this city and our mayor. She’s been
part of this plan from day one and very supportive to the vision and mission of Downtown Daily
Bread. We are thrilled for this new opportunity to serve the community at a bigger capacity.”
The City of Harrisburg had agreed back in 2023 to create a Bridge Housing program after the American Rescue Plan bill was passed.
The city set aside $1 million for the program, as part of the nearly $31.5 million of ARPA funds which will go towards other city programs such as home repairs, affordable housing, a new pool, and trash bill forgiveness.
abc27 news will keep you updated as more information becomes available.