SPOKANE, Wash. — It's been less than a month since the Salvation Army took over operations at the Trent Resource and Assistance Center (TRAC), the new homeless shelter in Spokane. Already, big changes are being made.
In partnership with the city of Spokane and Spokane County, the Salvation Army has brought in additional outdoor bathrooms and storage areas and are working to add more shower trailers, new beds, blankets, sheets and community areas.
"We don't want anybody freezing to death out there," Major Ken Perine told KREM 2. "What we really want is someone to come in, get the services they need to start putting their life together and move forward."
KREM 2 had a chance to speak one-on-one with Perine on Monday, as they are now taking over the daily operations from the Guardians Foundation. Perine said the goal is to bring as many people as possible in, out of the cold and away from the homeless encampment near I-90.
"For the Salvation Army, we have certain standards for how we operate our shelters," Perine said. "So from the very beginning, we're working on trying to increase those standards, bring them up to our regular standards."
The Salvation Army hopes the changes they're going to make will make TRAC a space where people experiencing homelessness want to be.
"You're in a warm environment, you get a bed to sleep on, you get the ability to take a shower, facilities to use the restroom, there's food here, and you'll have people around you to really start moving forward in life," Perine said.
There are currently about 275 people staying at TRAC every night.
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