Investing in people: CSO celebrates new Wells Street housing facility in Greenfield

GREENFIELD — While Clinical & Support Options is still working on finishing touches on the new housing facility at 60 Wells St., clinicians, community members and government officials gathered on Wednesday to celebrate the new “Friends of the Homeless” shelter.

“This represents something that many of us take for granted: Losing your key in your purse, having a key in your pocket, having a front door and, at the end of the day, knowing that we all have a place to come home to every night,” said Karin Jeffers, who serves as CEO of the nonprofit. “Thirty-six apartments in Greenfield may seem like a number on paper, but to the 36 people who are going to be calling this home in about a month, it’s the difference between surviving and truly belonging.”

The approximately $27 million, 35,000-square-foot facility is set to open later next month, and will offer supportive permanent housing through 36 studio apartments, as well as temporary shelter for as many as 42 individuals. Crews are still working to install final details such as room numbers, office signs and the elevator, and will be working in the coming weeks to move furniture from CSO’s temporary shelter on Arch Place.

During a tour, Senior Director of Shelter Housing Keleigh BenEzra said the facility has multiple offices where the clinicians and case managers will be able to offer addiction and behavioral health resources to those living in the shelter, as well as a leasing coordinator and nursing staff. The facility also has a kitchen, dining room, and a resource room where guests can spend time and get support when the dorms are closed for the day.

Both the men’s and women’s dorms will be locked from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and open overnight for up to 26 men and 16 women. Both the men’s and women’s dorms have full bathrooms with multiple stalls, providing privacy.

On the apartment side of the complex, the apartments — including the seven accessible ones — feature full bathrooms, and kitchens with a stove, fridge and microwave. The apartments come fully furnished, and each of the tenants is automatically enrolled in the Section 8 housing voucher program.

BenEzra added that as a permanent supportive housing facility, there is no timeline on how long tenants can stay, but the goal is that eventually they will be able to transition out of the facility and allow others to use it.

Jeffers said permanent supportive housing has proven to be the best way to combat chronic homelessness. It provides people without stable housing a safe place to call home while seeking treatment, and an address they can use on job applications.

“When people have stable housing, everything else becomes possible. Physical and behavioral health improve, hospitalizations decline, people reconnect with family, pursue employment, engage in treatment and begin rebuilding their lives,” Jeffers said. “Housing is not the finish line; it’s just the foundation. It provides the stability from which recovery, health [and] employment can grow.”

Congressman Jim McGovern said he is proud the federal government was able to support the project through approximately $800,000 in low-income housing tax credits.

“This new campus represents something really, really special. It’s not just a new building; it’s a new way of helping people rebuild their lives,” McGovern said. “Someone who comes here won’t just find a bed for the night. They’ll find safe shelter and a road to permanent housing, meals, counseling, health care, recovery services and people who believe in them. … This campus will change lives.”

McGovern added that, at a time in which the Trump administration is pushing for support services and the funding that makes it possible to be cut, it is important to highlight the importance of services offered by organizations like CSO.

“This is important stuff, and it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand the real difference they make in people’s lives and the positive impact they have on our communities,” McGovern said. “Housing is a fundamental human right. Every person deserves a safe place to sleep, stability and the opportunity for a better future. When we invest in housing and supportive services, it’s not just about the ribbon cutting. It’s about building stronger, healthier communities for everyone.”

Greenfield Mayor Ginny Desorgher said she is proud of the teamwork that made the new housing facility possible, and highlighted how supportive Greenfield is as a community.

“This facility will do so much for Greenfield. It represents a profound shift in how we care for our neighbors by bringing emergency shelter, permanent housing [and] wraparound supportive services together into a single, trauma-informed environment,” Desorgher said. “CSO is proving that we can meet people exactly where they are with the dignity they deserve.”

According to the Friends of the Homeless guidelines, CSO works to treat guests with respect and asks guests to treat staff and fellow guests with respect. Guests are asked not to use racist, homophobic, transphobic or sexist language, or use any threatening language or gestures. Substances, such as alcohol, marijuana, cocaine or heroin, cannot be used on the property or within a direct line of site of the facility.

The facility will have lockers available for guests to store their belongings.

Tenants have already been selected for the apartment side of the facility, and will begin moving in after the staff offices and shelter have opened in a few weeks. For more information about CSO’s emergency and permanent housing options, visit csoinc.org/housing-homeless-services.

While staff will continue working to finish the facility and move in, Jeffers said the Wednesday ribbon-cutting ceremony marked the end of a multiyear project that will make a difference for many people in the community.

“I’m of the belief that communities aren’t judged by the buildings that they construct. They’re judged by the ‘who’ those buildings are built for,” Jeffers said. “And today, as a community, we have chosen to invest in people who are too often left behind.”