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Community Needs To Find A Better Home For Domestic Violence Shelter

Woodlawn Avenue likely wasn’t the best place for a new shelter for women trying to escape from domestic violence.

Last week, nearly 30 people attended a city Zoning Board of Appeals meeting to speak against a use variance for a 12,000-square-foot shelter. The use variance would have been needed because a domestic violence shelter isn’t permitted in a residential zone. The first permitted district for such a facility is an R-C (multiple-family residential and professional office) zone. The residents gave valid reasons for disagreeing with the idea, and it’s good to see the Salvation Army officials at the meeting accept the neighbors’ reasoning.

A new building is necessary, however.

The current property has maintenance issues that are costly for a non-profit organization to fix continually. Old buildings eat up money for utilities and repairs that are better served helping victims get back on their feet. The type of property the shelter inhabits now doesn’t allow for the type of trauma-informed environment that would best serve the victims of domestic violence. And, as long as the appropriate agencies approve, additional space surely couldn’t hurt.

Salvation Army officials will be looking at more potential locations. We hope their search isn’t a long one and that the community as a whole comes to the realization that a shelter is needed and warranted. John Rader, a Jamestown police officer who is part of Project Crossroads, told a group who assembled recently for the 20th annual Walk Against Domestic Violence that, “Domestic violence will not be tolerated in our community.” Sending women trying to break the cycle of domestic violence into a shelter that doesn’t fit modern-day needs shouldn’t be tolerated either.

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