Episcopal Church of the Resurrection in Eugene OR is developing Opportunity Village, a innovative solution to homelessness in their area:
Dianne Sciacca has not wasted any time making herself at home in her new Conestoga hut, located in the parking lot of the Episcopal Church of the Resurrection in Eugene.
She describes the hut as having a “simple elegance. That’s the only way to describe it: simply elegant.”
Since Sciacca moved in at the beginning of January, she has already painted the exterior and created a small tile foyer from sampled and broken tiles in front of her hut.
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The huts, which cost between $200 and $500 to build, are created with the help of donors and volunteers. So far, the huts have received positive feedback from local officials.
Initially, the Conestoga huts were an experimental living alternative for unhoused members of the St. Vincent De Paul’s Overnight Parking Program. The program sites were for unhoused members of the community to legally park their campers, cars and tents.
Andy Heben, a local advocate for the homeless and a member of the Board of Directors for Eugene’s Opportunity Village project, was one of the community members who believed the Conestoga huts could also be a viable solution for solving the homelessness problem in Lane County.