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The first home in the Golden Triangle Regional Homeless Coalition’s tiny house village is about to be delivered to the city.
“We are receiving the delivery of our first tiny home on May 10,” GTRHC volunteer project director and board member Sandra DePriest told The Dispatch Thursday.
But with the first house on its way, and more to follow, what is going on at the future tiny home village? How will the village help the homeless in Lowndes County? And how soon will it take shape?
Planning a village
The tiny home village will be located on Airline Road on two acres between the Columbus-Lowndes Humane Society and Fire Station 4. The City of Columbus donated the land to the Homeless Coalition in March 2023.
For GTRHC President Susan Garton, the goal of the tiny village project is straightforward.
“The objective for GTRHC with this Tiny Home Village is to shelter unsheltered citizens,” GTRHC President Susan Garton told The Dispatch in a text message on Friday. “Give them a fighting chance at having a good life and not just surviving or trying to figure out where their next meal is coming from.”
DePriest said the project, which will be called the Fresh Start Tiny Home Village, includes an administrative building and 10 tiny homes. Six homes will accommodate two people, two family units will hold four people and two will be disability accessible.
Each resident will stay between 3-6 months in the tiny homes, DePriest said. Residents will receive assistance with job applications, interviews, GED training and access to a computer bank and other facilities.
“The goal is to address homelessness in the community and to assist people to become progressively independent,” DePriest said. “That’s been our goal all along, to give people a leg up, just to help them get on their feet.”
Progress on the village
DePriest said ground was broken on the village project more than 6 months ago, though she couldn’t remember the precise date.
Because the land for the tiny village is located on a flood plain, she said, dirt had to be added and built up on the site. Currently, she said, the project is in a construction phase to add electrical and plumbing to the site.
“Now we’re ready to start putting in the electrical and the sewer and pouring in the concrete,” DePriest said. “That’s the next step.”
Almost everything for the project, including labor, has been volunteer based, DePriest said. But once concrete foundations are poured, tiny home shells will be able to be placed on top, and work will be able to progress quickly.
The structure that will be arriving later this month, DePriest said, was built by a high school shop class and donated to the homeless coalition for free.
“The first home was built by Holt High School in Tuscaloosa, Alabama,” DePriest said. “…The shop teacher was a former youth minister of mine at Christ’s Church Tuscaloosa. He had posted that they were building one… probably four or five years ago they had gotten the grant to build one, and they had to give it away.”
After the first home is delivered, it may take a few weeks to get it placed in its final spot, DePriest said. Until then, the house will be placed somewhere temporarily for local residents to tour, getting a clearer picture of what the new village will look like.
Mayor Keith Gaskin told The Dispatch in a text message Friday that he and Columbus Fire and Rescue Chief Duane Hughes think Fire Station 4 may be the best location for the tiny home temporarily, since it would be close to the home’s final destination. But the temporary location is still in the works.
“We are going to meet soon to determine where to place it, and it will stay until the permanent location is ready,” Gaskin said. “It will also be a good location for citizens to stop and see what the homes will look like.”
The following nine home shells, DePriest said, will be funded by $200,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funding that the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors gave to the homeless coalition in 2023.
The Golden Triangle Regional Homeless Coalition also received $19,000 from 100+ Women Who Care Columbus in the fall, Garton said.
It takes a village
DePriest said it would be “fabulous” if the project could be completed within a year, but progress is dependent on volunteers and donations. GTRHC still needs more of both to finish the utility work and to fill out the interior of each tiny home.
Utility needs include concrete, electrical wiring materials and PVC. Unit interiors will need paint, insulation, sheet rock, cabinets and countertops, DePriest told The Dispatch in an email. Those interested in donating these items should contact the homeless coalition to ensure they can be used with other materials for the project.
Volunteers will also be needed to build out each unit’s interior beginning with the administrative building, which is ready to be delivered once the concrete is poured.
Some retired contractors have started helping to supervise the project, helping to keep things on track, DePriest said, but even more is needed to bring the project across the finish line.
“We’re working with some retired architects that have been wonderful,” DePriest said.
DePriest said any donations should be made out to the Golden Triangle Regional Homeless Coalition, P.O. Box 303, 39703.
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You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 32 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
