The D.C. Council approved the District’s contract to purchase a former University residence hall and convert it to a shelter for unhoused people last week.
Council members authorized last Thursday the D.C. Department of General Service’s $27.5 million contract to purchase the Aston from GW and convert it into a non-congregate shelter for unhoused mixed-gendered adult families and medically vulnerable people alongside the Department of Human Services. Ward 2 Council member Brooke Pinto withdrew a disapproval resolution against the contract last Monday after DHS officials agreed to requests that Pinto and the Foggy Bottom and West End Advisory Neighborhood Commission made following community input over the proposal, like the establishment of a community advisory team.
Pinto, D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson and At-Large Council member Christina Henderson introduced the disapproval resolution June 21 and requested council members delay their approval of DGS’s contract from June 22 to after the end of the 30-day ANC comment period on July 5 so community feedback could be given “proper consideration.” The ANC held meetings when the public could comment on the plan to turn the building into a shelter on June 21 and June 28, when the ANC passed a resolution “in general” supporting the shelter.
“Having allowed time for thorough community input and in response to feedback from the community – both concerns and support – I believe the best path forward is for this project to proceed with key conditions included to ensure a more successful outcome,” Pinto said in a statement Thursday. “I continue to believe that the best model to help move individuals experiencing homelessness into stable, dignified housing is through a bridge housing model of non-congregate settings.”
In May 2022, University officials announced plans to sell the Aston by the fall due to its off-campus location. Officials purchased the building in 1996.
Rachel Pierre, the interim director of DHS, said in the disapproval resolution withdrawal that DHS will create a community advisory team to present feedback from shelter residents during the first two years of operation, coordinate opportunities for public feedback on the shelter and develop “good neighbor agreements.” The ANC chair and a representative from Bowser’s administration will co-chair the team, which will include nine other community, ANC and D.C. Council representatives, two “homeless services stakeholders” and two other representatives from Bowser’s administration, the resolution states.
Pierre said DHS will provide security inside the shelter at all times and a “necessary” number of mental health staff to fulfill “reasonable” resident-to-staff ratios. She said the shelter will initially house 50 residents and that DHS will consult the community advisory team after two months for approval of an additional 25 to 50 residents if there are no verified safety or operational concerns.
Pierre said the shelter will prohibit alcohol and illegal drug use and that DHS will coordinate with the community advisory team to create further rules for the residents of the shelter. She said DHS will provide updates regarding the shelter and community advisory team meeting notes on its website once the shelter opens.
“We remain committed to working with you and the community as this project moves forward to ensure the issues you have highlighted are adequately addressed,” Pierre said.
