In wake of homeless shelter proposal, Cape housing plan revived

The New Life Evangelistic Center plan to transform the Cape Girardeau federal building into a homeless shelter gave new impetus this week to a two-year-old idea to build a small cluster of energy-efficient homes for struggling families.

When New Life announced its application to acquire the federal building at 339 Broadway, it sparked a negative reaction from city business and political leaders. The federal building is in an area targeted by Cape Girardeau's DREAM Initiative plan to revive downtown. But on Wednesday, at a weekly meeting led by Mayor Jay Knudtson and attended by civic and service agency leaders, a housing plan first announced in August 2007 became the center of attention.

Magnolia Place was to be a cluster of nine homes, each 1,200 square feet with three bedrooms, in the 500 block of North Main and North Spanish streets. Proposed initially by a group called Project Hope, Magnolia Place was designed to provide transitional help over a 15- to 24-month period.

Despite early support, the project languished. Knudtson acknowledged that Magnolia Place is getting another look because of the application by New Life founder the Rev. Larry Rice to house 125 people per year in a long-term transitional program in the federal building. Rice would also provide emergency shelter for the homeless.

Groups ranging from the United Way and the Salvation Army to staff from the offices of U.S. Sens. Kit Bond and Claire McCaskill and U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, as well as representatives of church groups were on hand, Knudtson said.

"Everyone was represented, and everyone gave their commitment to pursue this," he said. "It is important to point out that, for me, this isn't really about some kind of eleventh-hour ploy to stave off the Rev. Rice's application."

Instead, Knudtson said, reviving the idea is a response to the issues raised since New Life officially applied for the building May 4. Magnolia Place represents a local solution to local issues, Knudtson said.

"This type of project appears to have the scope and magnitude to address the needs," Knudtson said.

Rice praised the city for taking positive action.

"They are suddenly seeing the light, I guess," Rice said.

However, he said he would not back away from the federal building because of a promise.

The New Life application suggests that there could be 200 to 2,200 homeless in the area, depending on how homelessness is defined. Rice said nine houses is not enough but that Magnolia Place would be a good final step to self-sufficiency for families that use his services.

In his program, Rice said, families who seek emergency shelter would be given an opportunity to obtain longer-term help. His program would last up to six months, and the families that complete it would need a place to live when they finish.

"I think it is wonderful, and what we are proposing is not a cure-all," Rice said. "From day one we wanted to work with other agencies."

Magnolia Place faltered due to internal issues at Project Hope, said the Rev. Bob Towner, pastor of Christ Episcopal Church. Towner was a board member of Project Hope and one of the people who originally approached marketing consultant Bill Prost to develop the idea in 2007.

"I just think Project Hope was at cross-purposes with itself and couldn't follow through and it was put on the back burner," Towner said.

The idea is still sound, Towner said, and he intends to explore starting a program targeting homeless single men needing transitional housing when the controversy over the federal building dies down. The federal building is beyond the scale needed for Cape Girardeau, Towner said, adding that he was not encouraged by Rice's "warehouse approach to the homeless or transitional housing nor by his track record across Missouri."

Prost said he became involved again, gathering plans drawn by architect Philip Smith and attending Wednesday's meeting. "I was very pleased at the response, as far as they welcomed the alternative as something they would like to move forward," he said.

Making Magnolia Place a reality will take a cooperative effort of many agencies, said John McGowan, director of community impact for the United Way of Southeast Missouri and a board member of Love INC, an interfaith group bringing together churches for service to the community.

Now is a good time to bring a project like Magnolia Place forward, McGowan said. The federal economic stimulus bill approved in February means funding is available, he said. The political backing of the city and members of Congress will also help. U.S. Sen. Kit Bond, who opposes Rice's plan for the federal building, won approval this week of a bill to provide $2.2 billion for transitional housing programs.

The consensus to explore Magnolia Place is a positive result of New Life's application, McGowan said. "It is kind of like the stars are aligning both for the financial support and that we already have a plan in place that we can implement."

The city's response to New Life Evangelistic Center and Rice has been that the needs of the homeless in Southeast Missouri are already being met. Knudtson said pushing Magnolia Place may create an impression that is wrong but that he's convinced it is both needed and a local commitment to build it will show that Rice's programs aren't needed in Cape Girardeau.

"Some people have cautioned against the timing of this," he said. "But for me to say as mayor that there is nobody being missed in the area of homelessness would be pompous and unrealistic."

Rice worries that if he withdraws his application, Magnolia Place will be forgotten. "It is nothing more than a promise, and a promise that can go away as quickly as it is made," he said.

rkeller@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent addresses:

339 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, MO

500 N. Main St., Cape Girardeau, MO