A bed with a colorful quilt, an AC unit, a heater, a shelf to dry dishes — these are among the amenities people without housing can look forward to at ECHO Village, the pallet-shelter community opening in Providence this week.
After years of conversation and months of delays, organizers expect people experiencing homelessness will finally start moving into the 45 units this week. The individual shelter units sit arranged like a small cul-de-sac at the bottom of a hill, visible from the windows of cars merging onto I-95.
“As we prepare to open we must remember why we’re here,” Laura Jaworski, executive director of House of Hope, the nonprofit running the project, said at a Tuesday press conference ahead of the opening, “the nearly 600 people in our state who sleep in freezing temperatures and sadly sometimes don’t wake up.”
Conversations about ECHO Village — which stands for Emergency Covid Housing Opportunities — started in 2020, as the pandemic spread across Rhode Island. After several attempts to find somewhere to build the pallet-shelter community, House of Hope landed on a site in Providence’s Smith Hill.
“ECHO is not just about providing beds,” said Rhode Island state Sen. Jake Bissaillon, whose district includes the pallet shelter site. “It is about providing the foundation for people to stand on their own again. And while it is a step forward, we are nowhere near the finish line.”
Bissaillon emphasized how efforts like ECHO Village can help people experiencing homelessness change their circumstances, and that shelter and housing can be the first step towards a more stable life.
That’s a reality that John Chiellini has lived. He experienced homelessness while struggling with addiction post-incarceration and shared his experience at the press conference.
“Without stable housing, I could not address other critical needs,” Chiellini said. “I was trapped in a vicious cycle.”
Originally slated to open last spring, complications around providing adequate fire protection for residents and other construction-related issues kept the ECHO Village project on ice for months. Dozens gathered on Tuesday to mark the long-awaited opening.
Rhode Island House Speaker Joseph Shekarchi was among several state leaders who spoke to mark the occasion.
“I’ve been here for 15 minutes and I’m cold,” Shekarchi said standing at the podium. “Can you imagine someone living outside in the cold? Think about that for a minute.”
ECHO Village is unlike many other shelter options in Rhode Island. Residents have privacy and a door they can lock to protect their belongings. Some of the units will also be available for couples, who often struggle to find shelters where they can stay together. There are laundry facilities and bathrooms on-site, as well as case management and meal services.
According to federal data, Rhode Island has the second-highest rate of chronic homelessness in the country. In 2023, more than 2,400 in Rhode Island people experienced homelessness, a 35% increase from the prior year.
Providence City Council President Rachel Miller celebrated the “housewarming” for ECHO Village, while calling attention to other measures she said would help to curb the housing crisis and help people avoid falling into homelessness.
“We need to keep pushing for policies that prevent homelessness before it starts,” Miller said. “Policies like rent stabilization, tenant protections, just-cause eviction, social housing.”
This story was reported by The Public’s Radio.
