Samaritan House raises $2 million in donations for expansion amid a federal grant delay
May 31—The Samaritan House has raised $2 million through community donations, furthering its hefty expansion project and helping fill a funding gap created by a loss of federal dollars.
"It's really a beautiful thing," said Chris Krager, executive director of the Kalispell homeless shelter and transitional living facility. "The community has risen to the occasion to help us get started."
The Samaritan House is undergoing a $16.9 million expansion that would nearly double its capacity, allowing it to serve 85 more people.
The $2 million will go toward the first phase of construction, which entails a new apartment building with 18 income-based two- and three-bedroom apartments. The administrative building will also be expanded to accommodate a larger cafeteria and an overflow for the shelter.
Montana-based contractor Swank Enterprises is expected to roll onto the property on July 1 after the Department of Environmental Quality finishes cleanup at the former Army Reserve Armory located at 1110 Second St. W., which is where the forthcoming apartment complex will go up.
Krager said that fundraising efforts will continue, though, and more community support is needed to fund a 16-unit building to house homeless veterans.
AROUND $8.4 million has been raised so far, just over half of which are federal dollars, according to Krager.
"We're making progress. Nothing is in limbo. We are rolling," Krager said.
But construction plans had to slightly shift earlier in the spring after a multimillion-dollar federal grant seemingly disappeared.
The Samaritan House was in the midst of getting a $4.3 million grant approved when the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the federal agency in charge of dolling out the funds, abruptly cut contact.
The Samaritan House was left in the dark on the status of the grant program until a week ago when the federal agency reached back out to Krager, inviting him to reapply.
"We'll reapply. I know our application is really, really strong, so that's good," Krager said.
The funding comes from the federal agency's Continuum of Care grant program, which "is designed to promote a community-wide commitment to the goal of ending homelessness," according to the federal agency.
The Samaritan House will be hosting ongoing construction tours. To schedule one, email Chris Krager at ckrager@samaritanhousemt.com.
Reporter Jack Underhill may be reached at 758-4407 and junderhill@dailyinterlake.com.
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