Anonymous donor steps up to save downtown Minneapolis homeless shelter

A private donor is stepping up to help save a downtown Minneapolis homeless shelter that was on the brink of closing.

The donor, who wishes to remain anonymous, is giving $1.5 million to match the city of Minneapolis’ pledge to provide emergency funding for repairs needed to save Agate Housing and Services’ century-old building at 510 S. 8th St. and its heavily used food shelf at 714 Park Av.

The 510 building had 42 emergency shelter beds for men and 95 board and lodge beds — a form of temporary housing for homeless people unable to lease an apartment in the private market — and had been scheduled to be vacated on Oct. 9 due to plumbing problems and other capital needs rendering the building increasingly uninhabitable.

“I am amazed by these developments,” said Agate executive director Kyle Hanson in a statement. “I truly thought this shelter for those facing homelessness would be closed for good. This weighed very heavily on me and the staff. We know how much these beds are needed.”

The Minneapolis City Council agreed last week to allocate $1.5 million in emergency funding to Agate, contingent on finding a match to come up with the minimum $3 million required. The 10-3 vote was contentious, with Council Members Linea Palmisano, LaTrisha Vetaw and Michael Rainville opposed. Mayor Jacob Frey has not yet signed the resolution.

Arguing against the funding, Palmisano erroneously said that the permanent closure of the 510 shelter would have no effect on unsheltered homelessness, saying, “This type of housing at 510 is not going to house people coming from encampments, and that is not the type of shelter it is. It does not have any coordinated entry into it.”

Coordinated entry is a process of helping homeless people find placements in permanent housing based on prioritizing the most vulnerable. Homeless people living unsheltered in encampments need not go through coordinated entry to find a spot in any of Hennepin County’s emergency shelters, including the 510 building.

The loss of emergency shelter beds reduces opportunities for people living in the encampments to move inside.

“We get referrals straight from street outreach teams, ours and others, the criminal justice system, other shelters,” said Agate spokesperson Virginia Brown. “Removing these programs permanently absolutely impacts folks who might otherwise move out of encampments — particularly for folks exiting the criminal justice system, who do not meet the definitions necessary to qualify for coordinated entry.”

Palmisano also argued that the 510 building was underused, with a 50% vacancy rate.

According to Agate, staff have intentionally slowed down intake at 510 in recent months because of the poor condition of the building and impending closure, which would have required moving all residents out.

“Lack of demand or need for shelter” are not reasons why the 510 building has been operating under capacity, said Brown.

“I’m actually shaking just thinking about the fact that we’re arguing and disputing this,” said Council Member Emily Koski at a debate over funding for Agate earlier this month. “This moment calls for us to work together, and it will support residents that most need our help today. It’s going to save us as the city and other organizations millions and millions of future dollars.”

It would take tens of millions to build a new shelter to replace the beds at 510.

The majority of council members supported taking the $1.5 million from the city’s contingency reserve, but switched sources to the operating budget in response to pushback.

Deputy City Operations Officer Saray Garnett-Hochuli sent council members an email on Wednesday listing tradeoffs of the Agate allocation, including suspension of job classification studies, communications about benefits enrollment, participation in various job posting boards and fairs, an employee engagement survey and HR website updates. She said the Assessing office would have to forgo state-mandated continuing education for its employees, and the city would have to cut $350,000 meant for the Park Board to pursue its $35 million North Commons Park rebuild.

Minneapolis has ended each of the last six years with an average $21.7 million in unspent budget allocations, according to a news release from Koski’s office.

With the $3 million, Agate still plans to close temporarily on Oct. 9 to allow for construction, but following renovations, the nonprofit hopes 510 S. 8th St. will be able to provide shelter for the next 20 to 30 years.