PORTLAND, Maine — We've been talking about it for more than a week now -- how the city of Portland is handling the hundreds of asylum seekers who have entered the city since last Sunday.
While city leaders work to get a handle on this crisis situation, you at home are flooding NEWS CENTER Maine's inboxes with questions.
Sara asks: "We have extra room in our home and are interested in helping house immigrants, is this something we can look into?"
Here's what we found out.
City officials released a statement Wednesday night that explains their next steps in the housing search.
It says city officials are working with the Greater Portland Council of Government’s Metro Regional Coalition to create a long-term housing plan for the asylum seekers.
At an emergency meeting Wednesday morning, city officials say members of neighboring cities and towns agreed to work with local developers and private property owners to find vacant apartments or suitable empty facilities that could house 100 families.
G-P-COG will coordinate the creation of a program that will allow families to host asylum-seekers in their homes.
So, yes -- if you are looking to provide a temporary place for asylum seekers to stay, contact G-P-COG via email at hosthomes@gpcog.org
Please provide your name, address and best phone number to reach you.
Organizers are reminding those looking to help that this is a very new program, and they are still in the process of setting things up. They say they will respond to inquiries as soon as they can, and they appreciate your patience and willingness to help.
And, of course, if you at home ever have a question you want answered, just shoot NEWS CENTER Maine an email or use #askNOW on any of our social media platforms.