WARWICK – As the Cranston Street Armory’s temporary shelter nears its closure on May 15, the state plans to move 55 of the 150 homeless individuals currently staying at the shelter to the Motel 6 on Jefferson Boulevard.
The announcement, shared by Warwick Mayor Frank Picozzi on Facebook, comes on the heels of a rally by homeless advocates, who last week gathered outside Providence City Hall to protest the Armory’s closure and call on Providence Mayor Brett P. Smiley to designate alternative shelter options.
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The R.I. Department of Housing and Community Development did not respond to a Thursday morning PBN inquiry on the state’s plans to house the nearly 100 other individuals staying at the Armory.
In a written response distributed at last week’s protest, Emily Ward Crowell, chief of staff to Smiley, wrote that the city of Providence “does not own any properties that would provide safe, accessible housing for 150 people,” and has “been working with the state to find privately owned property to better suport the statewide response to homelessness.”
The state opened the Armory building as a temporary warming station in late 2022, and has since served more than 700 Rhode Islanders experiencing homelessness, according to Eric Hirsch, a professor at Providence College and member of the Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project. On May 15, officials plan to close the shelter.
Hirsch, an organizer of last week’s rally at City Hall, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday morning.
The Motel 6 in Warwcik has been used as a shelter for 40 other homeless individuals since the fall, Picozzi said in the Facebook announcement. Picozzi voiced concerns with the motel’s expanding shelter services in the post, stating that the city has “statistics and data on increased calls for service at Motel Six since the Fall and last year when the Nylo Hotel was being used as a shelter.
“Our concern is that our resources and manning are stretched thin already,” Picozzi continued, “and more calls could lead to having additional personnel working on some shifts or days which would be very expensive for the city but necessary for public safety.”
Picozzi met with R.I. Secretary of Housing Stefan Pryor and Gov. Daniel J. McKee to speak about the plans, he said, and McKee “was very receptive to try to work out some type of reimbursement arrangement.”
For the upcoming shift in shelter services, the state is partnering with Providence nonprofit Open Doors, according to Picozzi, which provides resources for homeless people and individuals who are currently or formerly incarcerated.
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Voghel@PBN.com.
