LEWISTON, Maine — Lewiston city councilors approved Tuesday night a new partner that will operate a future, city-run homeless shelter.
Kaydenz Kitchen, a local nonprofit that provides free food and clothes to unhoused individuals, is that partner.
"We're extremely excited," President of Kaydenz Kitchen Kevin Boilard said. "[Homelessness] is one of those challenges we've been looking to address aggressively."
Although the city has several shelters already, Craig Saddlemire, co-chair of Lewiston's Shelter Committee, said they only help a select demographic, such as domestic violence survivors and young people. He said the new shelter would be low-barrier and more accessible.
"That would help a lot of folks who are on the street right now and are not able to access the services that they need to get into permanent housing," Saddlemire told NEWS CENTER Maine.
He said plans are still in the early phases and the partnership doesn't include funding or an approved site. It's just to begin talks.
"The size of the shelter we’re talking about is somewhere in the range of 40 to 60 beds," Saddlemire added.
Kaydenz Kitchen most recently operated a warming center last winter at Calvary United Methodist Church, which Boilard said was a success. Due to the site not being available this year, he's looking to run this winter's warming center at the former Schemengees Bar & Grille building—one of the locations of last year's deadly mass shootings.
The undertaking is separate from the potential new homeless shelter, which Boilard said Schemengees would make an ideal location for. However, he emphasized there have been no official talks with the city about this.
"We feel it does check a lot of the boxes needed from a service provider standpoint, it’s over 10,000 square feet, it has a minimal communal impact," Boilard explained.
Wherever the future homeless shelter ends up, Saddlemire said it’s expected to open sometime in 2025.