AM Housing, Inc. closed on a house May 30 located at 215 N. High St. and hosted a student work day on Saturday. They hope to use the house as a homeless shelter in the future.
Currently, the AM Housing Board is awaiting approval from the City of Kirksville for a special-use permit to use the house as a homeless shelter, because the house is located in a commercially zoned area. Their initial proposal to the Planning and Zoning Commission was rejected May 8.
AM Housing Board President Glen Moritz said he talked to City Manager Mari Macomber about two weeks ago, and she was open to bringing the board’s permit request to City Council. Until the request is approved, the house is being used for transitional housing and there is one person who is already renting there.
“She was thrown out of her apartment with just a few days notice,” Moritz said.
Moritz said they are charging minimum rent, which is one-third of the tenant’s monthly income.
“Right now we’re just nice landlords,” Jimmy Clemens, AM Housing Board fundraising chair, said.
Aside from requesting approval from the city, Moritz said AM Housing is refining the policies and procedures of having people at the house on a transitional basis, fundraising for the future and working to improve the house.
Moritz said during the student work day about 25 volunteers from the Pershing Society and Alpha Sigma Gamma helped clean up parts of the property. Every window and floor in the house was cleaned. The house has eight bedrooms, two bathrooms, a small kitchen and a large living room.
Clemens added that the board is planning to host more workdays in the future, but dates for those are yet to be determined.
“One thing we do have a set date for will be our Colton’s [Steak House & Grill] night, [we’re] having another one of those on Oct. 29th,” Clemens said.
Anyone who eats at Colton’s on that day will have the choice to donate a percentage of their bill to AM Housing.