NORTH ADAMS, Mass. - The state is asking Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts to temporarily house up to 50 homeless families. School President James Birge said they’ll likely answer the governor’s call to action.
What You Need To Know
- MCLA is considering using their vacant Berkshire Towers as temporary homeless housing
- The Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development is reaching out to state universities to help address capacity issues in temporary homeless shelters
- The temporary agreement with the state would be 18 months and have "little-to-no" impact on MCLA's campus life. The impact of adding up to 50 families to the North Adams community is being considered as well
- MCLA is still in discussions with MA DHCD and the agreement isn't likely to happen until late-spring or early summer. The Berkshire Towers are currently being worked on as part of the school's campus-wide project to replace old steam lines to their buildings
“Right now, we have the capacity because of the empty building to respond to this pressing need," Birge said. "It's a priority of Governor Healey's and, so why wouldn't we try to be helpful and responsive that way?”
Birge said coming out of the pandemic, enrollment fell at MCLA and the school’s Berkshire Towers dorms are available. While the college is still in conversations with the state, two first-year students said safety concerns are at the top of their minds.
“I don't know if it's really the best idea, but I understand the intention of it," Stella Greenberg said. "But I don't think having these on college campuses, and not even just MCLA, on a college campus in general is really the best idea, personally.”
“If it's as safe as possible, I wouldn't be as against it," Tyler Pettit said. "But there's no guarantees with everything that you put in place.”
“Those are the questions we've had as well," Birge said. "‘What are the safety issues for us, not just for this population, but any population we bring on to campus? The Department of Housing and Community Development will partner with a local service agency. Right now, we think that's ServiceNet out of Northampton, and they'll manage the property. They'll oversee all the things that go on there, they'll provide security.”
MCLA also has a sworn police department, but Birge anticipates it wouldn't need to respond to the possible homeless housing location on the edge of the campus. Birge said the mission of helping relates directly to the role higher education institutions should serve.
“American higher education was founded on the purpose of responding to the needs and demands of communities," Birge said. "And so, I think that when we consider what that historic public purpose is, this is one of the ways that we articulate that purpose.”
Birge emphasized the project is temporary, it could start in the spring or early summer and would be for 18 months. The housing will then be re-evaluted. He anticipates MCLA will need the residence hall again with the addition of their new nursing program, as well as men’s and women’s ice hockey and lacrosse teams.