On Tuesday, the Richmond City Council received a presentation on The Concept of Villages for the Unhoused.
The presentation as provided by Richmond’s Village Development Team on the benefit of villages for the unhoused and how they fit into a whole person approach for resolving homelessness. It also focused on why community is important to unhoused individuals as they learn resiliency, new skill sets and how to transition into better lives. Villages involve relationship-building and motivating real personal changes, over time, not just getting people into subsidized housing before they are ready.
The presentation aimed to explain how peer-based support leads to the efficacy of community. This model is committed to safe, street-level and dignified pathways that build a culture of mutual accountability. Empowerment villages are very much part of this pathway to ultimately stable permanent housing.
The cost of a unit in one of the village was estimated around $35,000 to $45,000.
Councilmember Gayle McLaughlin shared while they have a youth village that is being developer, they also see a vision for adult villages as well. She said these types of villages could set people on the right course with peer-to-peer engagement to get a person into a better state of body and mind for a better lifestyle.
“A more secure lifestyle with housing, employment and other needs,” said McLaughlin.”I know this is something we would like to see.”
Vice Mayor Claudia Jimenez said they needed alternatives to get people off the streets noting the system as broken while the shelters were not enough.
“I think the village could be a good idea for transition, but did not agree with it being permanent,” said Jimenez. “I think what we need to have is housing with a kitchen, everyone deserves that. Pretending that this solution is going to be permanent for people to have a right to housing, I just don’t want this to be a permanent solution for housing because its not. It’s a short-term thing, but the goal is everyone has housing.”
Jimenez asked about costs per unit and challenges in building.
The cost of building the homes varies but with the volunteer based model, saving millions of dollars, costs for a youth village is $20,500 per house, not including community space. For the adult villages being proposed, with a bathroom and kitchen, it is estimated at $35,000 to $45,000 each.
“We love the model of volunteers and allies building houses in order to save money,” said Sally Hindman, executive director Tiny Village Spirit “We are looking at innovative solutions to solving these problems.”
Documents:
- Staff Report – click here
- Presentation – click here
1 comment
The Concept of Villages for the Unhoused sounds like a great idea! Each village may need a Manager to help manage the area and help people get back on their feet again. Someone who is responsible from within the village could even be hired as this manager.
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