Construction set to start on Tri-City Union Gospel Mission men’s shelter

In a few weeks, an empty dirt lot will be filled with construction equipment to build the new Tri-City Union Gospel Mission men's shelter in downtown Pasco.

Executive Director Andrew Porter said at a ground breaking Thursday it has been a 6 year effort to raise $10.4 million dollars for the project and to secure the land in the downtown area.

Porter hopes this new building will fulfill the needs in the Tri-Cities 50 years down the road. He says this shelter will be a "life transformation center," not only a place where homeless men can sleep but also a place for resources and to help them get back on their feet.

"More than just quantity of people it is about the quality of service we are going to be able to provide for men that come in. It's really about being able to offer everybody who comes through our door, an opportunity to get their lives turned around," says Porter.

The new facility will sleep over 150 men and also have education areas, classrooms and offices for caseworkers, which the current facility does not have. The building will be located just off 3rd and Columbia Street in Pasco, behind the Thunderbird Motel.