The Greensboro City Council is scheduled to vote tonight on buying the Coliseum Inn on High Point Road, and the plan is to tear down the hotel and sell the property to a developer. I don’t really have a strong opinion for or against the City buying and razing the property (there are pros and cons both ways), but I do want to know what’s going to happen to the residents if the hotel is torn down.
Unlike a lot of hotels, where people check in and stay for a night or two while they’re traveling, the Coliseum Inn is used by many people, including families with children, as low-cost housing. Without alternatives, some of these people are going to be homeless when and if the hotel closes. A recent News & Record article says:
Closing the motel would also put some residents out on the streets.
The city staff have been working with nonprofits to determine how they can help low-income residents who call the hotel home, said Dyan Arkin with the department of housing and community development. Counselors may be provided to help residents find new housing.
Who are the non-profits that the City is talking to? What are the options for the Coliseum Inn residents? I’d really like to know. I emailed Council and met with representatives from the City’s Dept. of Housing and Community Development months ago, when I first heard of the possibility that the City might buy the hotel. But I haven’t heard anything from the City since that initial meeting.
Our housing programs are full. Our shelters are full. A group of us are currently having meetings about emergency winter shelter, because we already know there won’t be enough shelter for individuals and families this winter — and that’s before you factor in the closing of the Coliseum Inn.
I just want somebody to be honest and non-political at that Council meeting tonight. If there’s a plan in place for those residents, awesome, tell us what it is. If not, then say that. And we’ll go from there. As my homeless friends say, “Just tell it like it is.” Please.
Update: Got a call from a City staffer. There’s no magic solution for potentially displaced residents, “but there’s a recognition that there could be needs.” The conversation will continue. Â I’ll be watching the meeting tonight. You can watch online here.
Update #2: Council voted to buy the property. So I guess the work begins now. [Sigh.]
