After Richmond reached out to Henrico and Chesterfield to ask that they share the cost of the city’s new homeless shelter on the Northside, Henrico has agreed to chip in. Chesterfield declined, saying it was too far along in its budget process to allocate new funds.
Roughly 22% of those experiencing homelessness in the Richmond region are from Henrico and Chesterfield. The city requested that each county cover a quarter of the operating costs.
Richmond put $7 million towards upgrading the shelter at 1900 Chamberlayne Ave. earlier this year, and now estimates that it will cost an annual $3.2 million to keep it running.
The Henrico Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to give Richmond $800,000 a year towards the shelter’s operation cost for the next four years. Chesterfield said it could potentially help next fiscal year, but not this one.
Roughly 681 people were experiencing homelessness in Richmond in January.
