These structures at The Dream Center in Easley depict what the proposed tiny homes at Daily Bread Ministries could look like.

Nonprofit hopes to add tiny homes

Kaelyn Cashman's picture
For homeless in Greer
By: 
Kaelyn Cashman

Daily Bread Ministries is continuing to chip away at the homelessness problem in Greer, with plans to add several tiny homes on its E. Poinsett Street property.

A proposed Design Review District (DRD) development plan for the project will be presented to the Greer Planning Advisory Committee this Thursday, Aug. 8.

Daily Bread Ministries is hoping to make use of a portion of its current parking lot at the Greer Soup Kitchen with the construction of multiple tiny homes.

“The proposal is a product of Daily Bread Ministries board of directors,” said Board Member Chip Patat. “Daily Bread already operates a homeless shelter, the STEP Program, for families near our soup kitchen. The proposed tiny home project would be for individuals and couples also, and an extension of STEP. STEP’s purpose is to provide temporary housing, but also educate our clients in life skills that will hopefully help them find jobs, transportation, and permanent housing.”

In addition to the tiny homes, this plan would add a parking plot, a stormwater management area, a storage building and a trash enclosure.

“The reason for tiny homes is, quite frankly, cost effectiveness,” Patat said. “We believe we can build tiny homes much cheaper than a traditional institution type building. There will be no cost to the clients to live there.

“Daily Bread Ministries is a Christ-based ministry, funded solely by private donations from individuals, churches, schools, and businesses,” he said. “We hope the community will get behind the project by donating funds and also help with the actual construction of the the homes themselves.”

The overall density of the project will not exceed five single-family tiny homes or roughly 5.26 units per acre at the Greer Soup Kitchen property at 521 E Poinsett St, Greer.

STEP operates at 511 E. Poinsett Street and has four apartments that house four homeless families.

Adults living in STEP housing are required to attend on-site classes that educate them in life skills and are coached to find jobs, transportation and permanent housing to allow them to be self-sufficient.

The proposed tiny home community would be for individuals or small-unit families for short-term emergency housing and longer-term housing for those who would like to enter the STEP program.

This would provide them with the same educational and life coaching opportunities to help them transition out of homelessness, and there would be no rent or financial costs to the residents.

The tiny homes may have a mixture of sizes, but the standard size anticipated is 12 feet wide by 16 feet deep.

The minimum square footage per tiny home is anticipated to be 192 square feet with most ranging from 200 to 300 square feet.

Each home would have a toilet, shower and sink, but there would not be a stove. Interiors would be completely finished with a single or bunk bed. If space allows, a small porch would be added to the front of each home. A fence may be added as a buffer to the remaining parking lot.

Daily Bread Ministries, which has been in existence for 28 years, currently operates the Greer Soup Kitchen and the STEP program and is organized with a board of directors that oversees all operations. Both the Soup Kitchen and the STEP Program have paid directors who oversee daily operations.

Regular inspections would be conducted of the houses and grounds, and residents would be required to keep their home up to standards.

kaelyn@greercitizen.com | 877-2076

The Greer Citizen

317 Trade Street Greer, SC 29651

Phone: 1-864-877-2076

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