Jan 12, 2015 3 min read

When the City Mission hit a roadblock in late 2013 as Washington officials rejected plans to expand its campus, the nonprofit’s leaders formulated a new project they hope will be a “bigger and better” option for the area’s homeless.

The organization received unanimous approval from Washington City Council last Thursday night to demolish two buildings and construct a new shelter that will house as many as 22 homeless veterans as it transforms and updates its West Wheeling Street campus.

“Now we can move forward with our vision to provide life-changing solutions for homeless male veterans in Southwestern Pennsylvania,” City Mission President Dean Gartland said following the vote. “We’ve always wanted to address their unique challenges, and now we have the opportunity.”

The new 12,000-square-foot building, which will be located along West Strawberry Avenue across from the city police station, will include a clinic and recreation space on the first floor, and bedrooms and living areas on the second and third stories.

City Mission Initiatives Director Jerry Oxford said they hope to have the two existing buildings – a warehouse and food services center – demolished this summer and the new homeless veterans shelter completed by July 2016. The shelter currently houses 14 veterans, meaning the construction project will allow the mission to increase the number of vets it helps by more than 50 percent.

“There’s nothing here … for veterans. You can’t get them to go up to Pittsburgh because if they live here, they’re going to stay here,” Oxford said. “It has increased the use of what we need here.”

The changes came after Washington officials blocked City Mission from expanding its campus footprint by constructing a new recycling and donation center on adjacent properties. The nonprofit has since decided to move that center to Crile Road in South Strabane Township, giving it more room in the city to rebuild and expand its shelters.

“We’ve always wanted to help the vets,” Oxford said. “If we’re not going to put the (recycling and donation) center in there, we can build a bigger and better facility for the vets.”

Councilman Joe Manning said the updates are a win-win for the city and the mission. He noted the buildings that are being demolished are older and now will be replaced by a brand new facility that will serve the area’s veterans.

“They had to go back to the drawing board a little bit, but it looks like a great facility, and I know the mission will do a great job,” Manning said. “I think this worked out better for everybody.”

City Mission officials held a meeting Monday night to discuss its fundraising campaign to launch the first phase of the project. Oxford said they plan to revamp the rest of the campus in different phases within its current location.

The organization has 85 workers across Washington County, including about 40 full-time employees, officials said. The organization has been in operation since 1941 and moved to its current location in the city in 1963.