Tedford Housing was awarded a $500,000 donation for its new homeless shelter, and its leader hopes the gift will inspire other organizations to contribute.
The donation was made by the Mid Coast-Parkview Health/LincolnHealth Community Health Improvement Committee.
“This kind of a commitment from an institution like that recognizes the importance of this effort,” said Andrew Lardie, Tedford Housing’s interim executive director.
A rendering of Tedford Housing’s new shelter planned for Thomas Point Road in Brunswick. Courtesy of Tedford Housing
Tedford, which operates the Midcoast’s only homeless shelter in Brunswick, is building a new, 17,568-square-foot facility on Thomas Point Road that will have more capacity and centralize support services. Currently, Tedford runs a 16-bed adult shelter and a six-family shelter. The new shelter will have 24 adult beds and four-bedroom units for 10 families.
“We know that one of the more significant barriers to health is the lack of housing, whether temporary or permanent,” Cindy Wade, president of LincolnHealth and co-chairperson of the committee, said in a statement. “Tedford is the only emergency-housing resource serving Lincoln County, and we are excited about the potential of enhanced access for our community.”
Mid Coast-Parkview Health President Christopher Bowe said the Community Health Improvement Committee “looks at recent community-needs assessments and relies on our shared knowledge of our communities to identify and prioritize projects we should pursue. The fund’s charter specifies our desire to make a measurable and sustainable impact. To use a baseball metaphor, we will be swinging for the fences.”
The new facility, which is anticipated to break ground in early 2024 and be completed by the end of the year, is expected to cost $8.3 million. Lardie said Tedford has raised $4.4 million so far, including $1.7 million in coronavirus relief funds distributed by Cumberland County and $360,000 from MaineHousing. Lardie said he’s lobbying corporations, foundations and individuals to raise the rest of the money.
“Everybody we talk to understands this is a critical issue for our region,” he said. “It’s just a matter of putting one foot in front of another until we get to the finish line.”
Lardie said the new facility is crucial because of the state’s homelessness crisis. He said Tedford for the last few years has denied 85%-90% of people seeking shelter because there’s no room. A March survey found Maine’s homeless population doubled to 4,411 from 2019-2022.
He credited Mid Coast-Parkview Health and LincolnHealth for stepping up.
“Local health care facilities are critical to our ability to help people get back on their feet during hard times and then stay housed,” he said. “We couldn’t do it without coordination and care from the health care system. This gift demonstrates their commitment to our mission.”
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