The manager of the Pallet Shelter Village stepped down from her position last week. Juniper Gapetz started in the role overseeing the community, also known as the Village, in early April. The village is operated by the Lawrence Community Shelter. She says she has a different perspective than leadership on how the Pallet Village should be operated.
The village is a community of 50 cabin-like emergency shelters on North Michigan Street for people experiencing homelessness. Its goal is to provide people safety, privacy and dignity in non-congregate shelters to help them transition into permanent housing. It also aims to connect people with social services and resources to help them along the way. People first started moving into the village in mid-March. The village is currently full, and there are more than 50 people on a waitlist, according to officials at the Lawrence Community Shelter. They added that at least three people have successfully transitioned from the Pallet Village to permanent housing and they see more doing so in the near future.
