Grand Traverse County commissioners voted Wednesday to approve $200,000 in funding annually in 2025 and 2026 – $400,000 total – to support Safe Harbor’s expansion to year-round operations. The move means Safe Harbor has hit its $1.1 million fundraising goal and is ready to apply to the City of Traverse City for approval to amend its special land use permit with the goal of extending its season starting in May.

Grand Traverse County’s allocation was the last piece of the puzzle Safe Harbor supporters were relying on to meet this year’s projected budget. Other funding support for 2025 is coming from seasonal donors ($500,000), a private donor leadership gift ($150,000), the City of Traverse City ($125,000), Munson Healthcare ($50,000), the Oleson Foundation ($50,000), and the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians ($50,000). Most of those sources have also committed the same amounts to 2026 except for the Oleson Foundation and GT Band, though Safe Harbor could apply for grants again next year.

Representatives from Safe Harbor and other community partners said operating the shelter year-round for at least the next two years will help provide immediate relief for individuals living at the Pines – a homeless encampment off Eleventh Street – while giving a local task force time to evaluate longer-term solutions. Dave Mengebier of the Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation said the task force will undertake a “broader strategic effort to address and end homelessness in our county,” including increasing the availability of permanent supportive housing and rapid rehousing programs, boosting housing units for individuals making 0 to 30 percent of the area median income (AMI), leveraging state and federal funding sources, ensuring day shelters are meeting local needs, and evaluating the long-term capacity needs of an overnight shelter.

The goal, Mengebier said, is to make homelessness “rare, brief, and one time in our region.” He added: “Our community has the talent and the resources to address this very complex issue of homelessness.”

County commissioners of both political parties spoke passionately about their support for the proposal and the need to protect the region’s most vulnerable residents. Commissioner Penny Morris, who reflected on her own history growing up with food and housing insecurity, said it’s “our responsibility as humans to help each other.” Commissioner Lauren Flynn said the county “can’t ignore” the homelessness crisis and needs to “be at the table” supporting both short and long-term efforts. “We’re never going to completely fix it, but we can help,” she said.

Commissioner Brian McAllister agreed, saying that “to do nothing would be wrong. We owe it to our community to do something.” He said there should be some conditions tied to the funding, however, a sentiment echoed by other commissioners. The board’s resolution of funding support did in fact have several conditions attached, including Safe Harbor providing monthly metrics on guest numbers and demographics, the homelessness task force providing regular written updates, the reporting of any alleged criminal activity that occurs at Safe Harbor to law enforcement, and Safe Harbor’s continued collaboration with community partners on entry and diversion, among other conditions. Morris also encouraged community leaders to listen to concerns from nearby residents about the shelter’s operations and not dismiss them as “privileged” or “NIMBY (not in my backyard).”

Though supportive of the shelter expansion, commissioners had lengthy discussion about where in their budget their funding allocation should come from. Commissioner Darryl Nelson, who was the sole ‘no’ vote in the commission’s 7-1 vote to approve the allocation (Commissioner Rob Hentschel was absent), objected not because of opposition to Safe Harbor but because of the funding process. Commissioners eventually agreed to pay for the allocation out of the county’s general fund, but Nelson said doing so skirted the county’s normal months-long budgeting process. The county also has opioid and cannabis revenues it can use, but Nelson didn’t want to use those yet since commissioners have committed to establishing a process for distributing those funds and have said they don’t want to continue disbursing them until that process is in place.

“I get this is an emergency,” Nelson said of Safe Harbor’s request, “but it’s not new.”

However, both Commissioner Ashlea Walter – who pointed to the “very sizeable fund balance” the county maintains each year – and Vice Chair TJ Andrews said the county could easily fund Safe Harbor’s request. Andrews pointed out that property values in the county are increasing “exponentially” year over year, leading to higher tax revenues. “If we cannot find $200,000 in our general fund budget to support moving forward, to support an overnight shelter for the most vulnerable members of our community, we are not serving this community,” she said. “If we can't do this, what are we doing?” Andrews added that Safe Harbor’s request is not “untethered...without any oversight or transparency,” pointing to the reporting conditions attached to the funding.

After commissioners voted to approve the funding request, The Ticker spoke with Safe Harbor spokesperson Josh Brandt about next steps for the shelter. Safe Harbor will need to amend its special land use permit (SLUP) with the City of Traverse City in order to operate year-round. “Alongside the work to secure funding, we have been working to finalize the SLUP application, which will allow for expanded operations,” Brandt says. “It is nearly complete, and we anticipate submitting it to the city planning department in the coming days.”

City Planning Director Shawn Winter notes that amending an SLUP is typically a three-month process, requiring both introduction and public hearing meetings at the planning commission and city commission levels. Those meetings are typically each a few weeks apart and could prove to be a tight timeline for Safe Harbor to navigate to be ready for year-round operations in May. However, because the city has encouraged Safe Harbor to go year-round and is helping fund its expansion, staff are willing to work with the nonprofit, Winter said, including holding extra or special meetings if needed. The planning commission could potentially have its first discussion on the SLUP amendment later this month, Winter says.

Safe Harbor is also gearing up to expand its staffing and volunteer support for the upcoming summer months. “Our volunteer operations committee has been preparing an operational plan that informs staffing and volunteer needs beyond our typical season,” Brandt says. “With the affirmation of funding from the county for the coming two years, we now have the assurance we need to retain necessary existing staff, begin hiring any additional staff needed for operations, and start a dialogue with volunteer groups about filling volunteer shifts beyond our typical season.”