Why Vive Needs a New Home
Because of our proximity to the border, people wishing to make a refugee claim in Canada have been coming to Buffalo for decades. Buffalo’s traditional homeless shelters are not equipped to support the specific needs of asylum seekers, who arrive with severe trauma and major legal support needs. Vive is the only shelter in Buffalo that can appropriately serve this population.
Vive Shelter has outgrown its current home at 50 Wyoming Ave. The new 1500 Main Street building will be 60% larger creating a safer, more comfortable and dignified atmosphere to promote healing for residents.
Why Vive Needs a New Home
Because of our proximity to the border, people wishing to make a refugee claim in Canada have been coming to Buffalo for decades. Buffalo’s traditional homeless shelters are not equipped to support the specific needs of asylum seekers, who arrive with severe trauma and major legal support needs. Vive is the only shelter in Buffalo that can appropriately serve this population.
Vive Shelter has outgrown its current home at 50 Wyoming Ave. The new 1500 Main Street building will be 60% larger creating a safer, more comfortable and dignified atmosphere to promote healing for residents.
Moving Vive to 1500 Main Street will accomplish three main goals
Promote healing for residents with a safer, more comfortable, and more dignified atmosphere.
The current shelter building (formerly a school) has an institutional feel that doesn’t generate a welcoming or comforting atmosphere for residents. In fact, one former resident said the current shelter reminded him of the jail where he was held as a political prisoner in his home country.
The new building at 1500 Main Street looks like a home and was originally built to house residents. There are lots of windows, letting in plenty of natural light. The solarium at the front of the building and the ample outdoor space will provide quiet places for residents to relax, reflect, and feel safe.
Increase resident privacy and keep family units together.
In the current building, dorms are separated by gender, which means families get split up. Bunk beds are spread across large rooms, which means many residents share space. Privacy is extremely limited.
The new building at 1500 Main Street is laid out more like a hotel. Small bedrooms branch off long corridors. Families will be kept together in their own small suites, while single residents will share with no more than five roommates.
Improve infrastructure to be more reliable and efficient.
The current building was not designed to accommodate hundreds of residents living in it year-round. As such, the infrastructure, especially the HVAC and plumbing systems, have struggled to keep up with the demands of the shelter. Repairs have been both frequent and costly.
The infrastructure embedded in the new building at 1500 Main Street was built to support year-round residents. The plumbing and HVAC systems will be more efficient and much more reliable.
ARTIST RENDERINGS OF OUR NEW HOME
FAQ
There are only a few shelters like Vive in the entire country. Because of our proximity to the border, people wishing to make a refugee claim in Canada have been coming to Buffalo for decades. Buffalo’s traditional homeless shelters are not equipped to support the specific needs of asylum seekers, who arrive with severe trauma and major legal support needs. Vive is the only shelter in Buffalo that can appropriately serve this population.
Vive has outgrown its current home at 50 Wyoming Ave. The new 1500 Main Street building will be 60% larger creating a safer, more comfortable and dignified atmosphere to promote healing for residents.
The length varies greatly depending on whether a person is making a refugee claim at the Canadian border or if they are applying for U.S. asylum. Depending on wait times at the border, Vive residents who are en route to Canada may be at the shelter for a few days to a few weeks. Residents who are working on U.S. asylum cases can be in the shelter for up to two years.
All over the world. Vive has been part of more than 100,000 journeys to safety from nearly 100 countries since its founding as an independent shelter in 1984. A majority of asylum seekers are from Colombia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Vive’s building, which was originally a school, has served its purpose but is not suited to providing shelter for thousands of people per year who have endured serious trauma. Challenges include:
- Institutional design doesn’t support healing and comfort
- Severe lack of privacy for residents
- Costly recurrent repairs due to overburdened infrastructure
- Families are separated into gendered dorms
Moving Vive to 1500 Main Street will accomplish three main goals:
Promote healing for residents with a safer, more comfortable, and more dignified atmosphere. The current shelter building (formerly a school) has an institutional feel that doesn’t generate a welcoming or comforting atmosphere for residents. In fact, one former resident said the current shelter reminded him of the jail where he was held as a political prisoner in his home country.
The new building at 1500 Main Street looks like a home and was originally built to house residents. There are lots of windows, letting in plenty of natural light. The solarium at the front of the building and the ample outdoor space will provide quiet places for residents to relax, reflect, and feel safe.
Increase resident privacy and keep family units together. In the current building, dorms are separated by gender, which means families get split up. Bunk beds are spread across large rooms, which means many residents share space. Privacy is extremely limited.
The new building at 1500 Main Street is laid out more like a hotel. Small bedrooms branch off long corridors. Families will be kept together in their own small suites, while single residents will share with no more than five roommates.
Improve infrastructure to be more reliable and efficient. The current building was not designed to accommodate hundreds of residents living in it year-round. As such, the infrastructure, especially the HVAC and plumbing systems, have struggled to keep up with the demands of the shelter. Repairs have been both frequent and costly.
The infrastructure embedded in the new building at 1500 Main Street was built to support year-round residents. The plumbing and HVAC systems will be more efficient and much more reliable.
There are eight rental units on the property that are currently occupied by six renters, who will remain in their units after Jericho Road acquires the property. Jericho Road will continue to use these as rental units to provide a sustainable revenue source for Vive.
Jericho Road plans to complete renovations and move Vive’s operations to 1500 Main Street in Spring of 2023.
FAQ
There are only a few shelters like Vive in the entire country. Because of our proximity to the border, people wishing to make a refugee claim in Canada have been coming to Buffalo for decades. Buffalo’s traditional homeless shelters are not equipped to support the specific needs of asylum seekers, who arrive with severe trauma and major legal support needs. Vive is the only shelter in Buffalo that can appropriately serve this population.
Vive has outgrown its current home at 50 Wyoming Ave. The new 1500 Main Street building will be 60% larger creating a safer, more comfortable and dignified atmosphere to promote healing for residents.
The length varies greatly depending on whether a person is making a refugee claim at the Canadian border or if they are applying for U.S. asylum. Depending on wait times at the border, Vive residents who are en route to Canada may be at the shelter for a few days to a few weeks. Residents who are working on U.S. asylum cases can be in the shelter for up to two years.
All over the world. Vive has been part of more than 100,000 journeys to safety from nearly 100 countries since its founding as an independent shelter in 1984. A majority of asylum seekers are from Colombia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Vive’s building, which was originally a school, has served its purpose but is not suited to providing shelter for thousands of people per year who have endured serious trauma. Challenges include:
- Institutional design doesn’t support healing and comfort
- Severe lack of privacy for residents
- Costly recurrent repairs due to overburdened infrastructure
- Families are separated into gendered dorms
Moving Vive to 1500 Main Street will accomplish three main goals:
Promote healing for residents with a safer, more comfortable, and more dignified atmosphere. The current shelter building (formerly a school) has an institutional feel that doesn’t generate a welcoming or comforting atmosphere for residents. In fact, one former resident said the current shelter reminded him of the jail where he was held as a political prisoner in his home country.
The new building at 1500 Main Street looks like a home and was originally built to house residents. There are lots of windows, letting in plenty of natural light. The solarium at the front of the building and the ample outdoor space will provide quiet places for residents to relax, reflect, and feel safe.
Increase resident privacy and keep family units together. In the current building, dorms are separated by gender, which means families get split up. Bunk beds are spread across large rooms, which means many residents share space. Privacy is extremely limited.
The new building at 1500 Main Street is laid out more like a hotel. Small bedrooms branch off long corridors. Families will be kept together in their own small suites, while single residents will share with no more than five roommates.
Improve infrastructure to be more reliable and efficient. The current building was not designed to accommodate hundreds of residents living in it year-round. As such, the infrastructure, especially the HVAC and plumbing systems, have struggled to keep up with the demands of the shelter. Repairs have been both frequent and costly.
The infrastructure embedded in the new building at 1500 Main Street was built to support year-round residents. The plumbing and HVAC systems will be more efficient and much more reliable.
There are eight rental units on the property that are currently occupied by six renters, who will remain in their units after Jericho Road acquires the property. Jericho Road will continue to use these as rental units to provide a sustainable revenue source for Vive.
Jericho Road plans to complete renovations and move Vive’s operations to 1500 Main Street in Spring of 2023.
Vive’s Work
Today, Vive typically welcomes between 1,000 and 2,000 asylum seekers from all around the world every year.
The shelter provides safety, shelter, food, medical care, and legal aid, as well as additional programming to help asylum seekers get on their feet in a new country. On-site support programs include ESL classes, structured children’s activities, behavioral health and trauma therapy, job training through 716 Ministries, and parenting classes through JFS of WNY.
VIVE’S WORK
Today, Vive typically welcomes between 1,000 and 2,000 asylum seekers from all around the world every year.
The shelter provides safety, shelter, food, medical care, and legal aid, as well as additional programming to help asylum seekers get on their feet in a new country. On-site support programs include ESL classes, structured children’s activities, behavioral health and trauma therapy, job training through 716 Ministries, and parenting classes through JFS of WNY.
A New Home for Vive
The A Path to Hope campaign aims to raise $6 million to purchase, renovate, and move Vive into a new building, located at 1500 Main Street in the City of Buffalo. This building previously housed The Bristol Home, an assisted living facility for women.
Vive’s current building, which was originally a school, has served its purpose but is not suited to providing shelter for thousands of people who have endured serious trauma.
A New Home for Vive
The A Path to Hope campaign aims to raise $6 million to purchase, renovate, and move Vive into a new building, located at 1500 Main Street in the City of Buffalo. This building previously housed The Bristol Home, an assisted living facility for women.
Vive’s current building, which was originally a school, has served its purpose but is not suited to providing shelter for thousands of people who have endured serious trauma.