Salvation Army officials and government dignitaries on Monday, Oct. 9, unveiled 72 new units of permanent supportive housing in Anaheim, part of a “Center of Hope” created to help people who have experienced homelessness navigate forward in their lives.
“That miracle of bringing hope, restoring hope to lives of people,” said Doug Riley, who oversees the western territories for the Salvation Army, “that’s what we are doing here.”
The $38 million building, which the Salvation Army will manage, is located next to the Christian nonprofit’s adult rehab center and 325-bed emergency shelter near Ball Road and Lewis Street. The permanent supportive housing units will allow people who are emerging from homelessness to receive rental subsidies and access other services.
The housing project broke ground in January 2022. Ben Hurst, the Salvation Army’s director of operations in Orange County, said Monday it is the largest permanent supportive housing project in the county.
Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken said the emergency shelter next door, which opened in 2019, has served more than 1,300 people. This new addition will give people a new chance at life and bring stability and purpose, she said.
“We can no longer just offer a roof and four walls to solve homelessness,” Aitken said. “We need mental health support. We need life skills, and we need all the other services that keep people housed, stable and successful. Center of Hope will deliver on all of these, and it will change people’s lives in miraculous ways.”
The Center of Hope will eventually also include the Salvation Army’s Center for Applied Research and Innovation, which will look for best practices and new ideas to help people coming off the streets.
Riley said the catalyst for the project was Judge David Carter asking local officials five years ago to “do something” to combat homelessness in Orange County. He said they quickly emerged with the idea for the building that debuted…
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