2026-09-28 · housing
One less shelter this winter: Metanoia says it can’t afford to open
The Metanoia Project, one of two seasonal shelters in Cuyahoga County, said it cannot afford to open this winter for the first time in nearly 20 years and may shut down entirely by December 31; it sheltered up to 45 people a night from November through April last season at a cost of about $300,000. Executive Director Kai Saga said the ADAMHS Board's loss of $8.5 million in county funding for 2026 and 2027 cost the shelter $90,000 a year, that a $75,000 county grant that covered part of the gap last year may not recur, and that the organization applied for more than 60 grants this year and was mostly denied. County homeless services director LeVine Ross said traditional shelters have about 400 men's beds and a little over 200 women's beds available, while NEOCH's Chris Knestrick said the coalition counted about 170 people living outside in August.
Cuyahoga County officials have called for 8% cuts to departments and programs funded by the health and human services levy.