The Wichita City Council has voted to provide $200,000 in funding to support a homeless shelter this winter. The funding is coming from the federal CARES Act, and the city had asked for proposals from local agencies to operate the shelter.
HumanKind Ministries will run the shelter from December 1st through March 31st. Wichita Housing and Community Services Director Sally Stang said the city is requiring the shelter to be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. HumanKind will also have to provide weekly reports on the people and families who are using the shelter, to provide data on the people being served by the program.
The CARES funding will run out in 2023, and City Manager Robert Layton said there will have to be ongoing discussions with agencies on future winter shelter operations. He said there’s an issue of responsibility and who should be providing the funding, and there will need to be a more thorough discussion with local providers of homeless services.
