Nov 04, 2024
GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) -- As the temperatures go down, the pallet homes go up at Pomona Park in Greensboro. The homes provide temporary shelter for people experiencing homelessness during the winter months. This year, there will be even more beds available. The setup at the park is slightly different this year. All of the pallet homes are in the same spot on the ball field, but there are two RVs on the outside of the fence. Each one is 45 feet long and filled with eight bedrooms and two full bathrooms with showers. “The layout is really different in the RV-style trailers, so we are looking forward to seeing if that will fill a different void in the community of people experiencing homelessness. For example, it has a bunkbed style. There are certain rooms that have higher-level beds that require stairs to get into the unit. We will take all of those things into consideration,” said Kristina Singleton, the executive director at the Interactive Resource Center. The IRC provides programming for the people living inside. “You work with a case manager, you fill out information and we take the highest need level first, and we go from there,” Singleton said. They have started the referral process and expect all 87 beds in the RV and pallet shelters to be full this winter. “A lot of the folks that stay here are already working, and it is really hard once you get a job to keep a job through the winter if you are sleeping outdoors. Just having a place you can lock the door, a place to put your things, a place that you can sleep at night, take a shower for the next day to get ready,” Singleton said. For the first time this year, the bathrooms, showers and RVs will be connected to the city’s water and sewer lines. Last year, every time we had to get it serviced, $400 each time once or twice a week,” said Troy Powell, Greensboro’s neighborhood impact manager. There is also a new transformer in place to keep up and keep the heat on all winter. “The transformer that gives the power to the project was already operating at 114%, so it was already over,” Powell said. Each year, the pallet homes are stored, cleaned and put up the exact same way. “Going on year three, they are in great condition, so we anticipate following that same process and preserving them. I hope that they can last 10 years. Maybe more,” Powell said. As long as the need continues, the city plans to continue and expand the program. Next year, they plan to use four RVs instead of two. “Of course, we are always hoping for permanent supportive housing. We want more longer-term answers, but until we can have that, this is such a great program in the meantime,” Singleton said. The rest of the pallet homes will be up by Thursday, and final inspections will happen Friday. On Saturday, the first group of residents will move into their temporary homes. They will stay up through the winter months and come down in the spring.  
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