Murray’s Gentry House Board still plans to close the non-profit emergency family shelter on Jan. 31 after a special called board meeting today.
The meeting followed yesterday’s Murray city council meeting where Councilman Robert Billington made a proposal to place the shelter under the purview of Murray’s Housing Authority, which currently pays $28,000 in-lieu-of tax to the city.
Gentry House Board Chair Rose Bogal-Allbritten says if that plan were to pass it could sustain a director for the non-profit and keep it open.
“What we really need to do is to hire a director,” she says. “Our board member who has been the volunteer director since the first day of November has to leave on the 31st of January. So a lot of what happens is dependent on if we receive enough money to hire somebody to fill that position on a full time basis.”
Bogal-Allbritten says the Gentry House is asking that this plan be on the city council’s Jan. 23 meeting agenda. But Councilwoman Jane Shoemaker says she isn’t sure if using Housing Authority money is within the city council’s abilities.
