KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The issue of homelessness has been at the center of attention in 2021 in Kansas City, Missouri.
However, on Tuesday the city announced more efforts to help those in need.
Through a "tiny homes village" the city will provide transitional housing for people experiencing homelessness.
“Our goal is to provide a large amount of emergency transitional housing to make sure we have safe, respectable, and climate-controlled living areas, particularly for those currently living in one of the 170 tent encampments across the city,” KCMO City Manager Brian Platt said. “This is one of several solutions we are exploring to create housing options that meet the diverse needs of our unhoused community.”
The city is still looking into possible locations for the tiny homes village. 140 beds in cabins will be provided by Pallet, a company that builds access to housing and employment.
The cabins will also have showers and laundry services on-site.
The push to address homelessness in KCMO began in January, after bitter cold took the life of 41-year-old Scott "6ixx" Eicke.
During Valentine's Day weekend, dangerously cold temperatures hit the Kansas City area. Groups like the Midwest Homeless Collective started a camp near Westport to provide shelter at the time.
Within weeks, the camp grew larger and into a form of protest to city leaders demanding it take more action to address the issues of homelessness.
KCMO Mayor Quinton Lucas and other city leaders began to meet with people experiencing homelessness looking to find solutions.
Since then the city has announced a number of efforts to address the issue.
RELATED | KCMO announces '$1 land bank program,' other efforts to address homelessness
RELATED | KCMO assisting people experiencing homelessness with replacing ID's, birth certificates
RELATED | 'I do feel progress': Mayor Quinton Lucas, homeless union inch closer to solutions
The construction of the tiny homes village will be overseen by Merging KC, a nonprofit that works to end homelessness.
The city did not give a date of when the tiny homes village would be complete.
