News

Deal collapses for homeless clearinghouse at Opp House

By Bill Moss, Published: March 20, 2024

The hopes of multiple nonprofit agencies to operate a “low-barrier” center serving homeless people and those in a mental health crisis have been dashed with the collapse of a deal to buy and renovate the Opportunity House for the facility.

The executive director of the Connections Center and numerous nonprofit leaders told a Superior Court judge in October that the collaborative effort was an ideal solution to address the needs of the community’s growing homeless population.

“We really do feel like this is a win-win for the community,” Rachel Ingram, the Connections Center’s director, told Judge Peter Knight during a hearing on Oct. 25. “What we’re envisioning is a low-barrier communitywide access point. We’re looking at upwards of a dozen nonprofits who would have a physical presence inside of this building so people who are experiencing crisis or who are in some kind of need can go to one place and have their needs met and to do that with a very relationship-based individualized approach.”

It’s not going to happen, at the Opportunity House or anywhere else, at least in the near term. The Connections Center’s board of directors has voted to dissolve, Ingram said Monday, and the receiver who is managing the last remaining asset of the once-robust senior center has notified the court that the property is going on the market.

The city had agreed last fall to buy the Opportunity House property for $505,000 and keep an ownership interest of around 30 percent while also donating a grant for the operation. The Connections Center planned to coordinate the clearinghouse along with partner agencies that were to include Pisgah Legal Services, Safelight, Thrive, the Hope Coalition, the Free Clinics, Manna Food Bank, Blue Ridge Health and others.

When the proposal became public, neighboring businesses and homeowners raised objections and the City Council retreated from its commitment.

“Ultimately, we weren’t gonna be a partner in ownership of the property,” City Manager John Connet said Monday. “We had $1.5 million in grant money that was still available to them but I think based on the uncertainty because of public outcry, they made the decision not to go forward.”

Council members had misgivings about the cost of the renovation and were concerned that no other public partners had stepped forward to help.

“To do a day center they would still have to come to City Council for (zoning) approval, and with the public outcry that was not guaranteed,” Connet said. “The council still had a lot of questions.”

As for the $1.5 million grant, which Ingram and the Connections Center board helped to apply for, Connet said a solution is in the works.

“We will work with Dogwood Trust to look for other opportunities to put that into good use in the community,” he said.

The land and 19,000-square-foot building at 1411 Asheville Highway are valued on the tax books at $2,117,900. Under state law, proceeds from the sale of the property would have to be distributed to one or more nonprofit agencies after the Opp House’s creditors are paid and the cost of the receivership is covered. Judge Knight would have to bless whatever plan the receiver, John Noor, recommends for distributing the money. The state attorney general also must review and sign off on a proposed plan for giving out money.

Noor also reported in a court filing last week that he had:

• Terminated leases and negotiated settlements for rent payments from two tenants, Wayne Boynton and Larry L. Crume, owner of Flowers by Larry. Boynton paid his rent in full. Crume agreed to pay a negotiated total in three installments. Both agreed to vacant the building by March 31, Noor said.
• Retained real estate agent Brian Turner of NAI Beverly-Hanks to list the property for sale.
• Continued to communicate with the Opportunity House’s creditors to negotiate payment of their claims.