next stop fema camp off to the death camps we go
Courtesy: Robyn Kemp
UPDATE:
6 News continued to follow this story and the homeless shelter did
re-open. An updated story can be found at the link below.
UPDATED story: Homeless Shelter To Reopen After City Shuts It Down
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – City officials
said on Wednesday their decision to close the building that housed the
Lansing City Outreach was the right one, because it violated multiple
safety standards.
Mark Bozzo runs the outreach program, and said
his building was cited for plumbing issues, for not having wall plates
to cover light switches, as well as for not having fire escapes that met
city code. "All we want to be able to do is stay open because some of
these people absolutely will be in the snow today because this is the
only place they can get in," said Bozzo. "Like today, it's about ten
degrees out, 15 degrees out. We came up today and somebody was sleeping
[outside]."
However, city officials said the building is not
zoned as residential space, but as office space, and is not safe to be
used as a shelter at this time. "The intent, as good as it is…it doesn't
mean that the building is sufficient," said Bob Johnson, director of
Lansing's Planning and Development department. "We could have just put a
sticker on that door and walked away, but we did not do that."
Johnson
said he worked with the department of community services and human
relations for the City of Lansing to make sure the people who were
displaced had somewhere else to go.
Bozzo said he's working with
contractors to help get the building up to code so at the very minimum
people can come in and stay warm during the day, even if they are not
allowed to sleep there at night.
For more information on the Lansing City Outreach, call Mark Bozzo at 517-505-0045
Emerald Morrow is a reporter with WLNS-TV. Like her on Facebook, Follow her on Twitter or email her at emorrow@wlns.com.
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