A Place to Call Home: Women Aware Opens NJ's First Permanent Supportive Housing

Women Aware took another step in addressing the long-term needs of families affected by domestic violence on Wednesday with the opening of the first permanent supportive housing in New Jersey.

Women Aware, the lead domestic violence agency for Middlesex County, also operates a safe house for women and their children who need to escape an attacker, but the safe house cannot provide long-term shelter for them. 

Further compounding the problem is a lack of affordable housing for these families in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. The average stay at the safe house increased from 36 days in 2012 to 46 days in 2013, according to the organization.

These clients are often unemployed or make less than $10,000 a year, according to Women Aware. This neccesitates the need for permanent housing geared specifically for them and their situations. 

Three families can live in the new housing while they rebuild their lives and work toward the next step with assistance from the organization, according to Heidi Atkinson, spokesperson for Women Aware.

"The three families who are invited to move from the shelter into the permanent supportive housing program will benefit from personal case management, develop their own budgets, and set long-term goals such as completing college and securing quality employment," a release from the organization said.

The expected stay is between 3-5 years, she said, but there are no move-out deadlines.  

The first family is expected to move into the new housing by the end of the year, with the other two in place by May 2013, Atkinson said.

The tenants will be expected to pay a subsidized rent of about 30 percent, plus utilities, said Edward Cross, who served on the development team for the project. 

The idea is to get them moving on a path to become financially stable and responsible while they transition away from their previous situations, he said.

On Wednesday, Women Aware and their extensive network of board members and supporters gathered in the backyard of the residence to reflect on a project that was three years in the making.

Over the course of those three years, the board went over their finances and plans and sometimes wondered if the project was potentially too large, too much, said Joseph Camarota, president of the Women Aware Board of Directors.

They ultimately decided that it was not. 

"If we didn't do it," he said. "Who will?"