A temporary day shelter for the homeless will open the Monday after Thanksgiving, thanks to a vote of approval from the Dane County Board of Supervisors. 

The shelter will be located at the former Lussier Teen Center at 827 E. Washington Ave. 

Dianne Hesselbein, Dane County Supervisor, District 9, said the county board’s decision to put the homeless shelter in the vacant teen center was based heavily off of the Dane County Staff’s opinion, as well as Lynn Green, the Dane County director of Human Service’s knowledge.

She said one of the advantages to having the day shelter located on East Washington Avenue was because it is on the Madison Metro bus line.

Hesselbein said having the shelter on the bus line allows the homeless to arrive safely and to be able to utilize the facility. She said they would also be able to use the bus to look for jobs or go to work.

She said the shelter would provide computers and lockers, which would be beneficial to the homeless, especially when looking for a job.

“It’s hard to go look for a job when you are carrying around big bags of your things,” Hesselbein said. “This way, they’ll be able to lock up their things in a safe place,”

The homeless could also use computers to research housing options, Hesselbein added.

Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said the location of the shelter has caused controversy among neighborhood residents and organizations nearby. 

Verveer said the Tenney-Lapham neighborhood, located near the former teen center, opposed using the vacant building as a homeless day shelter. 

He said the neighborhood had a negative experience last year with the homeless day shelter being nearby. 

Verveer said The Rainbow Project, a non-profit organization that provides services to children and families, expressed concern about the location of the day shelter, as it would be next door to their organization. 

“The Rainbow Project believes the shelter would be too close, because they provide services to children,” Verveer said. “They are worried there might be a conflict.” 

Verveer said the shelter would be similar to Porchlight’s shelter last year. It would be open during the day and allow homeless people to be out of the cold and in a warm facility. 

He said there would not be showers and laundry in the facility, which had received criticism from board members. 

“In a perfect world, there would be showers and laundry facilities in the shelter,” Verveer said. 

Hesselbein said the day shelter would provide a safe, warm place for the homeless. She said she is hoping showers could be provided in the facility, but is unsure if it is a possibility at this time.

Due to building constraints and lack of funding, both laundry and showers were not feasible to include, Verveer said. 

He said the original proposed location of the shelter was on Wright Street, but it was met with strict neighborhood opposition. Additionally, the proposed building failed to meet city-zoning requirements, resulting in a retraction of the approval process.