Local groups continue push for homeless shelter in Bullitt County

SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Advocacy groups in Bullitt County said the county is in desperate need of a homeless shelter.

"It's kind of a hidden thing," said Joanna Beckett, executive director of Bullitt County Housing First. "You don't understand what you're seeing when you see a car full of pillows in the Kroger parking lot. You don't understand that's not somebody going on a trip. That's a family living in that vehicle."

Perry Cooke, executive director of Mark 12 Ministries in Shepherdsville, is working to bring a permanent homeless shelter and resource center to the community, but there's not a date set yet for when that could happen. Last winter, Cooke and Mark 12 Ministries volunteers used heaters and donated military tents to set up warming shelters outside Mercy Hill Church. The church building was not used for a shelter because of COVID-19 guidelines and social distancing requirements.

Cooke, Beckett and other representatives from homeless outreach groups spoke Tuesday at a regularly scheduled fiscal court meeting at the Bullitt County Courthouse.

"Our purpose today was just kind of to educate (magistrates and the community) on the status of homelessness within Bullitt County and also to prove that the agencies that are working to end homelessness are working together and trying to fight this jointly," Beckett said.

Beckett said Housing First is a temporary living program for women and children. She said since the start of the pandemic, the program's services have been needed more and more.

"We’ve worked with more women in 2020 than we had in our previous two years combined," she said. "And this year, we’re on track probably to double what we did in 2020."

Beckett said she felt the fiscal court meeting was positive.

Magistrate Shaun Logsdon, who represents District 2 in the Mt. Washington area, said fiscal court has worked to improve the quality of life for the homeless community in Bullitt County and has worked directly with Housing First.

Logsdon said overall, affordable housing is an issue in the county.

"We asked about the emergency recovery money (at the meeting), which is the next batch of money that's come from the federal government," Cooke said. "And we've said to them that this money needs to be spent toward a shelter."

Logsdon said specifics are not clear yet on how money from the American Rescue Plan can be used. He said a lot of the CARES funding went to programs such as local EMS in the area. He said the fiscal court is looking to see a clear plan if future funding is provided for a project such as a shelter.

"Now they're asking, 'Hey, let us see the end game. Show us a proposal for how all of the agencies are going to work together to provide the resources that are needed in Bullitt County,'" Beckett said. "We desperately need some place here that is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year."

Cooke said Mark 12 Ministries continues to try and bring a permanent homeless shelter and resource center to Bullitt County, but there's not a date set for when one could be opened.

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