Parents Sound Alarm Over Proposed Homeless Shelter Located Next to Child Daycare 

Parents are outraged that a short-term housing facility for unhoused people is set to open in Buffalo near a children’s daycare, local CBS affiliate WIVB-TV reported. 

The facility, a joint venture between two groups, will act as a temporary stop for around 20 men who are experiencing homelessness. 

“The goal is for them to be there short-term, 6 to 9 months so that they can get stabilized, get on their feet, and then move on with their lives,” said Cindy Lee, the CEO of OLV Human Services, one of the two groups running the shelter. 

All of the facility residents will be screened, said Cindi McEachon, CEO of the second group Peaceprints of WNY CEO. 

While some of the residents may have misdemeanors, none of the residents will have a history of assault against minors. 

But parents say they’re still concerned because the facility will be located near an early children’s program. 

“My main concern is my son’s safety,” one mom with a 4-year-old enrolled in the neighboring preschool told WIVB-TV. “I feel like it’s a risk to put individuals who have been convicted of crimes right next to a preschool.”

The two organizations said the location for the facility was chosen due to its proximity to public transportation. 

“We would have never moved forward with this if I thought there was a significant potential of risk,” Lee said. “I’m responsible for every child and every teacher that is in that school adjacent to the housing and I take that responsibility very seriously.”