Homeless Shelter 1st of Its Kind in Nation : Housing: House of Hope in Orange is the country’s largest temporary home for women and children, the fastest-growing segment of Orange County’s homeless. Stays can be 18 months.

The nation’s largest temporary shelter for homeless women and children, described by one federal official as a “model for the entire country,” will soon open its doors to the fastest-growing segment of Orange County’s homeless population, advocates for the homeless said Monday.

The House of Hope, scheduled to open in early December, will provide shelter, health care, child care, vocational training and a private high school to 20 women and 25 children, said Jim Palmer, executive director of the Orange County Rescue Mission, the group that will run the home.

Single parents, mostly mothers, are the fastest-growing segment of Orange County’s estimated 10,000 to 12,000 homeless population, said Tim Shaw, executive director of the Orange County Homeless Issues Task Force.

Shaw was one of a host of city, county and federal officials, volunteers and building industry executives who gathered to dedicate the shelter and thank those involved in bringing the project to fruition.

“It’s extraordinary. It’s a remarkable achievement for Orange County . . . and a model for the entire country to learn from,” said Art Agnos, regional administrator for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The expansive, wood-shingled house fills the space of three lots on South Lemon Street. With its high ceilings, huge central fireplace, 20 semi-private rooms and children’s playground, it has the air of a country home. Officials commended HomeAid Orange County, the nonprofit organization that coordinated the building effort, for the tasteful appearance of the building. Agnos said too many people fear shelters will look like “flophouses.” The new shelter demonstrates that “we’re learning to design quality low-income housing so it’s no longer unsightly and unattractive,” Agnos said.

Maria Mendoza, homeless coordinator for Orange County, said the shelter is to be commended for other reasons as well. It will allow women to stay for 18 months rather than the 30 to 60 days that is usual at other shelters.

The extra time “will really help them make the transition” from homelessness to self-sufficiency, Mendoza said.

“The other thing that makes this program unique is that individuals who will come here will not be your welfare recipient,” she said.

The Orange County Rescue Mission believes in complete self-sufficiency of its clients, Palmer said. In order to qualify to live at House of Hope, women cannot be on public assistance or use drugs, he said.

House of Hope was built in large part from contributions of materials and labor from area subcontractors, said Mike Lennon, executive director of HomeAid Orange County.

More than half of the $1.5-million cost of the shelter was donated by local subcontractors and building suppliers who gave everything from garage doors to drywall and labor.

Officials agreed that the new shelter is sorely needed, but added that more affordable housing is also needed for families once they leave the shelter.

Most affordable housing is targeted at those who make around $14 an hour, said Allen P. Baldwin, executive director of the Orange County Community Housing Corp. But the county needs to focus on building housing for people who earn around $7.

“We need to have that next phase of affordable housing available for these young families,” Baldwin said.

Shaw added that people need to break down their “class prejudice” when they think about those who are homeless.

“They are nurses aides, waitresses, truckers, not lazy people who are sitting around feeding off the system,” he said.