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Support the Plan to Turn an Abandoned Indianapolis Hotel Into a Homeless Shelter
  1. Signatures
    828 out of 1,000
    Petitioning
    1. Historic Irvington Community Council
  2. Created By
    Josie Raymond
    Brooklyn, NY
About this Petition Petition Letter Petition Updates

NIMBY alert! A plan to convert an empty, run-down hotel into a shelter for the homeless has some residents in Irvington, Indiana, an Indianapolis neighborhood, practicing their best "not in my backyard" arguments.

The location in question is the Indy East Motel, which was shut down two years ago after being plagued by crime. Its owners have offered to donate it to Good News Ministries, an organization that already runs one rescue mission. The resulting shelter could house 160 people.

Local residents — at least the vocal minority who turned out to a recent public forum — say inviting the homeless in will result in decreased property values. Ahem. Research shows that property values don't drop when the homeless move in. When they're housed, they're not homeless anymore anyway — they're formerly homeless.

Tell the Historic Irvington Community Council to allow the hotel to become a shelter, for the good of the community and their homeless constituents.

Photo credit: Sarah Nichols

Recent Signatures

Turn the Indy East Motel into a homeless shelter

Greetings,

I was dismayed to learn that a plan to convert an empty, run-down hotel into a shelter for the homeless has some residents in Irvington practicing their best "not in my backyard" arguments.

The location in question is the Indy East Motel, which was shut down two years ago after being plagued by crime. Its owners have offered to donate it to Good News Ministries, an organization that already runs one rescue mission. The resulting shelter could house 160 people.

Local residents — at least the vocal minority who turned out to a recent public forum — say inviting the homeless in will result in decreased property values. A growing body of research shows that property values don't drop when the homeless move in. When they're housed, they're not homeless anymore anyway — they're formerly homeless.

Please allow the hotel to become a shelter, for the good of the community and your homeless constituents.

[Your name]

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