A new family center for unhoused mothers with children 12 and older is under construction and set to open in the main office building of the Union Gospel Mission in Sioux Falls later this year.
According to Union Gospel Mission's CEO, Eric Weber, the center aims to be a safe place for families to work on getting back on their feet. It will be able to house up to 10 families at a time.
“I think there's going to be be a lot of people able to utilize this," Weber said. "We just had somebody the other day that came in, a mom with a 16-year-old boy - homeless. We don't have a spot for a mom with a 16-year-old boy. There are other shelters in our community, but they were full, and they couldn't really do anything.”
Weber predicted 60-70 families a year will use the new family center.
Each room will be about 18-by-24 feet and able to hold eight to 10 beds. However, Union Gospel Mission is aiming for less than six people per room.
"It gives them privacy. They'll have doors, they'll have walls all the way to the ceiling," Weber said. "They'll have a place where they can just get away and just focus on getting better."
The length of each family's stay will vary depending on what program they are part of.
The center will open later this year. Weber said he hopes it will open by Thanksgiving, but delays with construction materials might push it to early December.
