ANAHEIM : Grant Denial Delays Women’s Shelter

The Salvation Army’s plans to build Anaheim’s first shelter specifically for homeless women have been put on hold because the charity was denied a $275,000 state grant needed to open the center.

“We’re disappointed,” said Paul Delaney, director of rehabilitation services at the Salvation Army’s Adult Rehabilitation Center in Anaheim. “It would have been a drop in the bucket compared to the costs of running a 25-bed facility, but it would have been a start.”

The state rejected the Salvation Army’s grant application because of the conditions that homeless women would have to meet to be allowed into the shelter. The center would not admit women unless they were sober and drug-free and willing to make a six-month commitment to the program. Religious services are part of the program’s daily routine, and those participating would be asked to attend the chapel programs regularly.

In addition, the proposed center would offer drug and alcohol rehabilitation services.

The state had earmarked the funding for a homeless shelter that would provide a place where women could spend the night unconditionally.

“Our program may have been too intense for them,” said Delaney. Salvation Army rehabilitation programs include work therapy and other services designed to end the cycle of homelessness rather than just offering a temporary place to stay.

The Salvation Army still intends to open a center for women, but without the start-up funding, the plans will be delayed. Delaney estimates that it would cost about $225,000 a year to operate the shelter. The Salvation Army has run a men’s center in Anaheim for five years.