Pine Street Inn, New England's largest homeless services organization, will move 180 residents out of temporary housing at a Suffolk University dormitory and into a building at 891 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, to conform with the CDC's social distance recommendations, helping ensure the continued safety and wellbeing of its guests.
In March, Pine Street worked with the Boston Public Health Commission and City of Boston to move men and women from its main shelter buildings into temporary housing at a Suffolk University dorm to reduce congestion and increase social distancing. The dorm was a short-term solution, and following an intensive search to secure longer-term accommodations, Pine Street Inn will lease the space at 891 Massachusetts Avenue as a "bridge" to permanent housing, beginning July 2020. Each of the building's 90 rooms will house two guests, primarily frail and vulnerable men and women with underlying medical conditions.
"Pine Street's goal has been to move men and women off the streets, out of shelter and into permanent housing, and the COVID pandemic has made this even more urgent. We cannot go back to our pre-COVID conditions, with overcrowded shelters," said Lyndia Downie, president and executive director of Pine Street Inn. "Depopulating shelters along with other measures, including masks and handwashing, have made an overwhelming difference as we have tested guests over the past few months. We appreciate the ongoing support from the City of Boston and the Boston community as we move forward with these measures."
As part of the move, Pine Street will provide specially trained housing placement teams, also located at the space, to work with each individual to develop a housing plan and work towards a permanent housing placement, aiming to house all residents within 12 months. In addition, Pine Street will provide around-the-clock staffing and security at the new location.
For more information on Pine Street Inn, please visit pinestreetinn.org.