Hope granted a reprieve

The Hope Community Center can continue to operate a homeless shelter in the coming months while the organization seeks a permit from the city to permanently keep its doors open, Charlottesville’s zoning board decided on Thursday.
The zoning board actually ruled that the center is illegally operating a homeless shelter on 11th Street Northwest because overnight shelters are not permitted in that residential neighborhood. But the board also concluded that the shelter’s operators could ask the City Council for a special exemption and that city staff could not shut it down in the meantime.
It is unlikely that councilors will take up the matter before June, city officials said, because the request first has to come before the Planning Commission. If the council refuses to grant the center a permit, city staff would then seek to close the shelter’s doors.
“What we have done is give some time to Hope [Community Center] to pursue a rezoning that would allow this use to continue in the existing location or to look into other alternatives for locating the shelter elsewhere,” said Kevin O’Halloran, the chairman of the zoning board.
Harold L. Bare, a pastor at Covenant Church, and his son, Josh, have been operating the shelter since December, when the organization that started the shelter collapsed. On average, more than 40 men, women and children spend the night at the center, while also receiving a hot meal, a shower and social services such as employment counseling.
The responsibility of running the shelter’s day-to-day operations has fallen to Josh Bare, who is also pursuing an MBA at Regent University. He has spent about 80 hours a week at the shelter — an experience that is fulfilling but has left him exhausted.
The Bares said they are thrilled with the zoning board’s decision to allow them to keep the shelter open for the time being and promised to file a rezoning request within the 30-day limit.
“This gives us the opportunity to continue serving our clients, to continue giving them hope and give them the chance to get back on their feet,” the younger Bare said.
However, more hurdles lie ahead for the shelter’s operators. The Bare family and church members have pumped thousands of dollars from their own pockets into keeping the shelter running. Now, though, they are nearly tapped out.
If area residents and organizations do not step up with donations, there is a chance that the shelter will close, forcing dozens of people back to Charlottesville’s streets and parks.
“We don’t have money to operate another week right now,” Pastor Bare said. “We will have to have significant help from the community.”
The zoning saga started in January when a resident called the city’s zoning inspector to complain that the center was illegally operating the homeless shelter. On Feb. 27, the city sent the Bares a letter notifying them that they were violating the city code.
It would be “disrespectful” to the neighborhood if the city allowed the shelter “to continue operation in violation of the law,” Read Brodhead, the zoning inspector, said Thursday.
Though the shelter is clearly providing a needed service in the community, its operators cannot flout city rules, Charlottesville officials said.
“There has to be some checks and balances,” said Ric Barrick, city spokesman. “You can’t put [a shelter] anywhere just because it’s a good thing.”
But to the people who call the Hope shelter home, the city’s adherence to zoning regulations comes off as callous. Nearly a dozen homeless people gave emotional testimony Thursday to the zoning board about how the shelter staff is empowering them and helping them find jobs.
“I’m homeless. But I don’t feel homeless anymore because of the Hope Community Center,” Robert Robertson told the board.
Others stressed the negative repercussions for the area’s homeless population if the council does not grant the shelter the necessary permit.
“These are people making progress and trying to get ahead with their lives,” said Steve Biddle, who is homeless. “But if you close the place you are really going to hurt people.”