In the nearly two years since it opened, the Gary Leif Navigation Center in Roseburg has helped more than three dozen formerly homeless individuals find permanent, stable housing, according to a presentation to the city’s homeless commission Monday.

Jacob Schlueter, Douglas County housing and homeless services program manager for United Community Action Network, which operates the shelter for the city, said the center has also provided walk-in services, like referrals for housing or medical assistance, to nearly 650 people seeking help.

The center, located in the 900 block of Southeast Mill Street, took in its first clients in June 2022. The people were placed in small living structures set up in the parking lot of the property, which the city bought from UCAN. The interior of the building was converted into a 32-bed shelter, which is currently full, Schlueter said.

The low-barrier shelter currently houses 20 men, 21 women and eight children, including an infant, he said.

“Low barrier does not mean no barrier. We do have restrictions on drug and alcohol use on site, and we do have some other restrictions on violence and things like that,” he said. “But what we’re trying to do is to actively remove barriers to get into the shelter.”

In addition to the people housed at the shelter, there are 51 people who exited it. Of those, 38 found what state guidelines consider a “positive outcome,” Schlueter said. That amounts to a 75% success rate.

“They have moved onto a permanent sustainable housing situation, whether that’s their own apartment, that’s living with family, whether it’s ‘I’ve got an RV I’m going to go live in,’ those are all positive outcomes viewed by the state,” Schlueter said.

There is a list of about 150 waiting to get into the shelter, he said.

In addition to providing housing for guests, the shelter helps connect them with other services, such as medical care, job training and food assistance. The center partners with community groups like the Housing Authority of Douglas County, HIV Alliance and Adapt.

Schlueter said he has not heard any complaints from area residents.

Will Kuhaneck, who has worked at the center for two years, also addressed the commission. Kuhaneck said he had been homeless for years before entering the center as one of its first guests.

Last fall, he got his own apartment.

“What we’re doing there is great for the community to help people get off the streets like I did,” he said. “They helped me and with the success rate that we have now, it’s showing that we’re there, we’re helping people get through the rough times.”

Kuhaneck said virtually everyone he works with at the center wants help with permanent housing.

“The people that come in, I would say 99% of them want help to overcome their barriers,” he said. “And this is a day in and day out thing that as guest hosts we deal with, to help them move on.”

Shaun Pritchard, executive director of UCAN and a member of the homeless commission, said he is proud of the work of everyone associated with the navigation center.

“We’re making a difference, and it’s just one person at a time,” Pritchard said. “It’s not something you can wave a wand at, it takes a lot of work.”

Pritchard said he expects the program to be funded next fiscal year, which begins July 1, and is waiting to hear from the state to confirm that. UCAN receives about $100,000 a month to operate the center through a contract with the city. That money comes largely from state grants.