LISBON - Four residents showed up at Tuesday's Village Council meeting to complain about a homeless shelter being opened in their neighborhood on Maple Street.
Michelle Seidner came to the meeting with a petition signed by 41 residents opposed to the rental house across from her being used as a 13-bed homeless shelter by the Community Action Agency (CAA).
"We don't want the riffraff down there," she said, calling it a lousy location. "Everyone down there has kids, and it's right next to the bike trail."
Marti Grimm of the CAA was present and explained the shelter was located at a rental property in East Liverpool for the past 12 years, but they decided to relocate because the landlord was failing to maintain the property and the neighborhood had begun to deteriorate.
"We had people refuse to go in our homeless shelter because of its location," she said.
The CAA began searching for a site in Lisbon because the agency is located here and the fact the village if centrally located.
Applicants must meet certain criteria to stay at the shelter, and background checks are performed to determine if the person is either a registered sex offender or convicted of a violent crime, which automatically makes them ineligible. Grimm said they also deny requests from any clients they had problems with the past.
Two case managers are on staff to visit the home and work with the homeless on achieving goals needed to improve their chances of becoming self-sufficient when they leave. While there, they are required to perform household chores, and any alcohol or drugs found on site results in immediate expulsion. There is also a 10 p.m. curfew, and hanging out on the front porch is prohibited.
"If they don't follow the rules, they're out," Grimm said.
While the shelter can house up to 13 people, Grimm reported the average occupancy is eight. The first client is an 18-year pregnant girl whose parents are deceased.
"So it's not always the same population everyone expects," she said. "There are families that can be one check away from being out on the streets."
Grimm told the residents to call her if there are any problems. "We will be doing our due diligence to be good neighbors," she said.
Megan Beagle could not help but feel her neighborhood has become less safe because of the homeless shelter. "I hate the fact it is directly behind my house, where my 10-year-old daughter rides her bike ... Now you will have new people there every 30 days," she said.
Ms. Beagle wondered if the East Liverpool neighborhood where the shelter was located began to deteriorate because the shelter moved in, adding she was told the shelter had become a drug house.
When the shelter closed in East Liverpool, Grimm said, the occupants declined to relocate to Lisbon, preferring to stay close to relatives and friends in the East Liverpool area. Some went to the Steubenville shelter, while others stayed with relatives.
Mayor Dan Bing told them the village was powerless to stop the shelter from coming to town. "We don't have jurisdiction over this ... It doesn't fall under zoning," he said.
Councilman Joe Morenz, who lives near the shelter and signed the petition, said they would have appreciated some notification, but Grimm said they do not like to publicize the location.
Councilman Willis Coleman said he hopes the shelter does not become a problem similar to when the mental health agencies chose Lisbon as the location to provide housing for the mentally handicapped in the county. He said the case managers were initially difficult to deal with when problems occurred.
The shelter is funded with $127,400 in federal money received by the CAA. "Our tax dollars are used to do this?" said Judy Alderhold.
The residents asked if police would patrol the area a bit more frequently, and Bing said he will talk to the police chief about doing that.
"I hope if something happens and this gets to be a recurring problem, I hope there's something you can do," John Beagle told council.
