Monroe, Michigan, homeless shelter closed after inspections cite fire, electrical and disability access problems; community fundraising to reopen

A safe haven for homeless people in Monroe has closed, leaving dozens of people who called it home struggling to find a stable place to stay. The shelter, Oak Village, is on 2nd Street in Monroe.

People at Oak Village knew the building needed work, but they did not expect the process to lead to what has since happened. “We requested the inspections because we needed to know what to address,” said Garry Moore, executive director of Oak Village.

Moore became executive director nine months before the closure. He had a long connection to the shelter before that role. “This place saved me when I first came here five years ago, and I’ve seen so many people come through here, their lives being changed and transformed,” Moore said.

The shelter was condemned for a lack of fire suppression, outdated circuit breakers, and non-compliance for people with disabilities. Moore said the closure would make life difficult for those who relied on the shelter.

The doors were locked for good on Tuesday, and people staying there had to find other places to live, such as hotels and other accommodations. Moore said some people fell back into bad habits after leaving the shelter. “It’s hard once they get out of this environment, where you are put in a hotel where drugs are available all over. There is no accountability anymore, and this was a stable place for a lot of people,” he said.

Supporters are now working to raise the funds needed for repairs and to reopen the shelter. Oak Village has a GoFundMe page where people can give, a practical act of hospitality toward neighbors without a home (Matthew 25:35). Moore described the scope of the work. “To extend the building out and make it ADA compliant, that’s a big project. Everything else we can do in a couple weeks probably,” he said.

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