Dream Center Peoria is looking to expand it shelter operations with help from a six-figure grant from the City of Peoria.
Kristy Schofield, the center's director of homeless and housing, says the shelter needs the funding to accommodate increased demand after the city banned unauthorized public campsites.
“We are looking to bring in couples, which there are quite a few of, and single women from the encampments and we would create a separate space,” said Schofield, noting many of the clients have mental health and substance abuse disorders.
“We would have case management peer counselors on site 24 hours a day, working with this population to try to get them housed as quickly as possible.”
The faith-based nonprofit located in downtown Peoria operates an emergency shelter for women, children and families, providing meals, showers and resources along with a place to sleep.
“Normally in our shelter, we operate one floor for sleeping and one floor for living. We would, during this time, open both floors 24 hours a day,” said Schofield, who added the funding would also cover on-site security around the clock.
A vote to approve the $105,000 grant for Dream Center is on the agenda for Tuesday’s Peoria City Council meeting.
“Once the council approved the anti-camping ordinance, the community development staff did reach out to our social service agencies and asked them to assist with the unsheltered individuals,” said City Manager Patrick Urich.
“Dream Center came back and said that they could expand their shelter capacity, but that they would need some funds to manage it on a monthly basis to support the additional security and administrative expenses and operating expenses, as well as the staffing.”
Urich said the funding comes from the $680,000 pool in the 2025 city budget set aside for services to address homelessness. The proposed agreement would cover two months of expenses, with an option to extend to a third month.
“I think we're looking at this as temporary right now, just to get us through the winter period and early spring,” he said.
“What we are hoping will happen is, [because] we have so many agencies within our community that are working tirelessly to house these folks, that we will be able to house a majority of those individuals, and then there would be no need to continue [beyond] that,” said Schofield. “But in the case that doesn't happen, we would re-evaluate at the end of three months.”
Noting the council will also vote on a $10,000 reimbursement for LULA Peoria, Urich said the city is still willing to assist other organizations that help unhoused individuals access funding.
“We're open to talking, and we have had conversations with them all,” he said.
