02-04-2025
Rise like the phoenix — New transition house opens in Erie
One Erie resident is on a mission to help those struggling with homelessness begin a new life.
It's the largest project he has ever taken on, but he hopes his new 'Phoenix House' concept will help many in need.
At first, when Matt Bennett walked into the building, it wasn't exactly what he was searching for — but after one look around, he knew what his heart was calling him to do.
'I was here for a different purpose. I was looking around and saw that it was on the market,' said Bennett. 'We just got to it and started making it happen.'
Our Neighbor's Place season ending this week
At the corner of East 21st and Ash Streets is a property of over 6,000 square feet.
It was previously used as a funeral home and was recently sold to Matt Bennett, the founder and director of Erie Housing.
Their mission is to help people with low income, veterans, parolees and others transition and rebuild their lives by providing clean, safe, affordable housing.
'I worked with MCRC, the Muticultural Community Resource Center, on housing immigrants and the feed back that I got from the help that I was giving the community, the immigrants just made me ask 'What else can I do to take this further to help people who are already here and struggling?'' said Bennett. 'People do have to pay $600 a month. It's okay if they're paying it themselves or they're funded in some way.'
He's calling it 'The Phoenix,' which he said the death and rebirth concept matches the house itself
Bennett and his crew have transformed the building into a 19-bed residence with a common area, bathrooms, laundry and more.
Both men and women can be housed here, and the sleeping areas will be separated by gender for safety purposes.
'We put a lot of thought into it with security locks,' said Bennett. 'They have their own separate apartment for five women upstairs with laundry, kitchen and they have a separate exit out to the parking lot.'
Erie Habitat for Humanity, Erie Insurance partner up to build two new homes
Bennett said he has received a lot of community support from volunteers to furniture donations.
He believes there should be more options for those who may be struggling.
Once he has the Phoenix House open for a while, he hopes to open another transition home in the future.
'Just in the applications that I've been getting realize that I can't take all of these people, but there are heartbreaking stories,' said Bennett. 'So many people in Erie need help.'
Applications are now open, you can find the link to apply here.
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