WORCESTER — With winter shelters set to close and existing facilities at capacity, city officials are weighing whether homeless shelters in Worcester can be kept open year-round — a move that would require new funding, staffing and space.
The issue was raised at the April 8 City Council meeting, where Councilor George Russell asked why some shelters are only seasonal and whether they could be extended beyond the cold months.
“It has been more visible to those of us who haven’t been providing services — lay people like myself,” Russell said, referring to the increasing number of unhoused individuals in public spaces.
City Manager Eric Batista said shelters open only during winter because they are funded as emergency facilities, not permanent operations.
“There are many factors to that,” Batista said. “Over the past three years, what we’ve been trying to do in the winter time is to open up temporary shelters. All three years were funded by the state.”
City will soon lose 78 beds
To expand shelter access year-round, Batista said the city would need to identify a permanent location, secure long-term funding, and staff the facility appropriately. He added that Worcester’s current shelters are already full every night and will lose 78 beds with the upcoming closure of two emergency shelters.
“One of our investments that the city made was the investment for a resource center,” Batista said, noting that the center is 12 to 18 months from completion. The city has also funded outreach workers and some permanent housing options, he said.
Most congregate shelter beds in the city are operated by the South Middlesex Opportunity Clinic (SMOC), according to Batista, while smaller facilities serve specific groups such as women and children.
“Every agency that we’ve talked to has had challenges with capacity,” Batista said. He noted that the city does not run its own shelters but provides support and funding.
Councilor Kathleen Toomey said shelter safety is another issue, citing complaints from unhoused individuals.
“I have heard complaints about items being stolen in shelters,” she said, referencing her role at the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office.
Haxhiaj asks for emergency plan
The broader homelessness crisis was brought into focus by Councilor Etel Haxhiaj, who warned that looming federal cuts to housing and urban development programs could trigger a surge in homelessness in Worcester.
“I feel that we are heading into an unprecedented human condition with regards to homeless,” Haxhiaj said, sharing that a patient in the Road to Care program had returned to a tent after losing housing and was later found deceased.
She said providers expect homelessness programs to be slashed under the Trump administration.
“This surpasses an emergency, surpasses a crisis,” she said. “Those words feel completely inadequate to describe what I think … will be a situation that will probably see a lot more people on the street, in parks, and in areas of public use.”
Haxhiaj asked the city to prepare a 12- to 18-month emergency plan, including timelines, funding sources, resource needs and potential barriers to implementation.
“I hope that this report comes in collaboration with the providers and provides an analysis to give us an idea of how much we can manage and how much we cannot manage,” she said.
Vote for report was unanimous
The council voted, 9-0, to approve the motion, directing the city manager to return with a report within a month. Russell also asked that the report include examples from Boston and other communities facing similar challenges.
“As the federal government cuts various different programs, the residents of this city, and surrounding communities, will be looking to this city government to make up the difference,” he said. “We’ll be trying to put out fires on funding that we’re losing ourselves. I’d also like to know what’s going on in Boston or other communities…if they have programs or other ways they’re dealing with it.”
Contact Steve Smith at steve@stevephotographysmith.com.
