A 62-room hotel conversion for adults with on-site care advances alongside a faith-based transitional campus. Council wants guaranteed outreach access, metrics, and guardrails.
At the Oct. 13 City Council session, staff laid out two pieces of Charlotte’s homelessness response: a 62-room non-congregate emergency shelter created from a hotel for adults with on-site medical and behavioral care, and a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Dream Center transitional campus opening with about 48 rooms and wraparound services. With shelters already at record utilization and 444 people counted as unsheltered countywide, council pressed for hard numbers and hard rules, asking for a guaranteed share of rooms for street-outreach referrals, clear resident-access language for Charlotteans, performance reporting on throughput and outcomes, and non-discrimination guardrails in any faith-based setting. Members also flagged the parallel gap for families while the Booth Commons facility remains closed for renovations.
What Council Debated and Why It Matters
Staff presented two supportive-housing proposals: a 62-room non-congregate emergency shelter for adults and a separate Charlotte-Mecklenburg Dream Center transitional campus developed with True Homes that would open with about 48 rooms and a clubhouse for services.
Council’s questions focused on who gets in, how many people move through, and how success is measured. Members asked staff to hard-code a room set-aside for street-outreach referrals, protect religious freedom for participants in faith-based settings, and show how capital and operating dollars will be sequenced and accounted for.
“We need a floor for street-outreach referrals, not a ceiling.” — Mayor Pro Tem Dante Anderson
What Non-Congregate Means Here
Private rooms, not bunks. The shelter would convert a hotel to basic rooms with private bathrooms. Some rooms would have one bed, some two, and two-bed rooms could serve two separate adult households. The facility would serve adults only. No minors.
On-site care. Space for medical care, mental-health services, substance-use treatment, and casework is part of the design.
Direct referrals. A share of rooms would be reserved for street-outreach partners, so outreach teams can place people quickly when trust is built.
Operations. Mecklenburg County would solicit an experienced provider. An earlier request for information drew two responses that staff said demonstrate capacity to operate the model.
Length of stay and throughput. Emergency shelters are intended to be short-term, but full shelters and limited permanent housing can extend stays. Council Member Ed Driggs asked for annual throughput and stay-length data. Staff will follow up.
“Tell us how many people we can serve in a year.” — Council Member Ed Driggs
How the Money Works
Capital. The City and County would fund acquisition and renovation of the hotel. City funds would be last in and can be contingent on private commitments being secured.
Operations. Staff said private partners have indicated support to fund the first three years of operations. The provider must present a year-four sustainability plan. Because supportive housing charges little to no rent, projects cannot carry debt and rely more on public and philanthropic capital, which raises the public share and per-room cost compared with conventional apartments.
One-line diagram. Capital: City and County buy and renovate the hotel. Operations: donors fund years 1 to 3. Provider submits a year 4 plan.
Guardrails on Access, Equity, and Faith
Outreach and resident access. Mayor Pro Tem Anderson asked staff to write a minimum percentage of rooms reserved for street-outreach placements and to ensure Charlotte residents have access. Staff will confer with the County and return with language.
Non-discrimination and monitoring. The Dream Center is a faith-based nonprofit. LaWana Mayfield asked for explicit non-discrimination and non-coercion language in contracts, and for clear complaint pathways and monitoring. Staff said the City’s standard non-discrimination clause applies and that council can add contract-specific parameters for new partners, including tighter oversight.
“Faith in housing and faith and housing are not the same.” — Council Member LaWana Mayfield
The Companion Proposal: Dream Center Transitional Campus
Who and what. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Dream Center, a 501(c)(3), proposes a transitional housing campus with wraparound services, developed with True Homes. The first phase includes about 48 rooms and a clubhouse for services.
Program. A structured about 12-month pathway with mental-health and recovery supports, daycare, recreation, and job-readiness. Council members noted some residents will arrive without substance-use needs, and programming should reflect that.
Funding and timing. The request before council is $2 million for the first phase. Staff said 12 to 24 months is typical for this kind of construction and will return with a specific schedule.
A System Gap No One Ignored: Families
Staff cited the latest point-in-time count showing 444 unsheltered people countywide and said shelters are at an all-time high for utilization. The need for non-congregate options is especially acute for adults with medical or mobility barriers.
Family shelter remains a separate challenge. The Booth Commons family facility is closed for renovations after unexpected costs. Staff signaled a future recommendation focused on families. Renee Johnson urged an interim plan, noting that families are sleeping in cars right now.
Policy Work Council Asked For
- A minimum set-aside of rooms for street-outreach referrals and clear Charlotte-resident access language
- Performance reporting on throughput, length of stay, exit destinations, and returns
- Contract non-discrimination and complaint monitoring provisions for faith-based settings
- An interim path for family shelter while Booth Commons is offline
- A written policy for repeat gap-funding requests and partner shortfalls, and a separate evaluation template for supportive-housing proposals
“Dignity and choice must be part of housing.” — Mayor Vi Lyles
What Happens Next
Staff will return with:
- Annual throughput estimates for the 62-room shelter and a recommended minimum percentage for outreach referrals
- Draft contract language on resident access and non-discrimination
- An interim family-shelter path while Booth Commons is closed
- A draft gap-funding policy and updates on outside funding sources affecting current projects
Key Follow-Ups Requested by Council
- Annual throughput and length-of-stay estimates for the 62-room shelter
- A minimum percentage of rooms reserved for street-outreach referrals and resident-access language for Charlotte
- Contract language on non-discrimination and complaint monitoring for faith-based settings
- An interim plan for families while Booth Commons remains closed
- A written policy for repeat gap-funding requests and partner shortfalls
About the Author
Jack Beckett covers the paper trail and the fine print at City Hall so you do not have to. He drinks his coffee like council reads staff memos: strong, black, and all the way to the bottom of the page.
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© 2025 The Charlotte Mercury / Strolling Ballantyne
This article, “Sheltering Dignity: Charlotte’s First Non-Congregate Shelter, Explained,” by Jack Beckett is licensed under CC BY-ND 4.0.
“Sheltering Dignity: Charlotte’s First Non-Congregate Shelter, Explained”
by Jack Beckett, The Charlotte Mercury (CC BY-ND 4.0)