Warren officials point fingers as homeless shelter shutters operations

(FOX 2) - Evette Austin was in need of shelter as she and the rest of Michigan look for some relief from the scorching temperatures boiling the state.

But unlike those with a place to cool down, she had no place to go. After dialing for help, she was told to go to Friend of the Father Foundation in Warren.

Unfortunately, she only learned of the shelter's closing after arriving at its doors.

"It's actually one of the resources we were given by 211," she said. "We went to the Salvation Army shelter and they were closed, and this was the only place we could think to go."

The news is arriving at the worst time and the head of the foundation said politics is to blame.

Big picture view:

Raymond Deloatch said he was forced to close the doors permanently to the housing shelter after running out of money.

The temporary housing option provided both a place to stay and resources for finding a job.

"I didn’t ask for a handout, I didn’t ask for nobody to do anything for me. I ask for teamwork because I’m keeping the community and the city and the streets right here in the city of Warren clean," said Deloatch.

He said he closed the shelter on Saturday, after it operated 24 hours a day.

"It's politics — I don't know what happened," he added. "I want to thank Warren city Council for trying to get this going but they sent it to the Mayor’s Office. I don’t know what happened after that so I had to shut down."

One county commissioner said the loss of the nonprofit is a loss to the community.

"And what we’re going to see is those people have no place to go. They have no place where they can get job training, no place to get education, no place to hide from the sun for a little while," said Macomb County Commissioner Michael Howard II, "and Ray did all those things."

What they're saying:

Jonathan Lafferty, who serves as a councilmember in Warren, said he tried to push a proposal into law to help lock in funding for nonprofits like Friends of the Father Foundation.

"Anybody who is running a nonprofit entity that provides the services that could meet the criteria for insurance, certificate of occupancy, permitting and inspections, ensuring a safe environment for the homeless could apply for this contract," he said.

The proposal was pitched in January. He blames the Warren mayor for the pitch not being enacted.

His message to Mayor Lori Stone was "do your job or make room for someone who can."

The other side:

Stone's office issued a statement rebuking members of the council laying blame at her feet.

"The City of Warren, neither owns nor operates a municipal homeless shelter. The Fiscal Year 2027 budget adopted by the Warren City Council does not include funding for the operation of a municipal homeless shelter. While several City Council members have spoken about the challenges of serving Warren’s unhoused population, their actions have failed to match their words."

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