$$$?

Last edited and updated, including with the latest available related information, news and reports, on Wednesday, March 27, 2024 at 5:00 AM (EDT): 

Note: Per the temporary regional homeless shelters daily update (sent out on Friday, 3/22/2024):

"All shelter are now closed".

Regarding the plan by Governor Phil Scott's administration to host four huge regional, supposedly short-term, congregate homeless shelters across the state, a question has arisen within my mind about it (rhetorically posed; and, please excuse my bluntness as well as outrage, however), ...

Is anyone -- other than myself -- asking how much $$$ this, for the lack of a better or more appropriate term, *pure baloney* er, absurd plan will cost and where all the funds will come from❓❗

If not, I sure wish someone would ask and try to get an honest answer from whomever can best provide it, sooner rather than later.

Related news coverage concerning the temporary regional stand up homeless shelters: here, via Bennington Banner; here, via vtdigger; here, via Seven Days; here, via Rutland Herald; here, via Vermont Public; here, via WCAX TV News; here, via Rutland Herald; here, via Brattleboro Reformer; here, via Vermont Public: Vermont This Week show; here, via WCAX News, includes archived video; here, via Times Argus; here, via vtdigger; here, via Montpelier Bridge; here, via Seven Days); here, via vtdigger; here, via WCAX News; here, via Times Argus; here, here, as well as, here, via vtdigger; here, via Burlington Free Press; here, via Seven Days; and, here, via Manchester Journal.

Read related commentary, via Bennington Banner, here; and, here, via vtdigger.

Update 1: Someone kindly clued me in about how the House Human Services Committee asked the money related question(s) yesterday and had been told by Department for Children and Families (DCF) Commissioner Chris Winters that they could not provide those figures at that time or something along those lines.

View archived video of the committee's inquiry concerning these and related matters (the start time mark for that segment begins at around 1:17:03):

Note: Hadn't managed to view the entire above video segment prior to posting this particular update.

Update 1.1: View a copy of the related public records request of mine sent to VT DCF officials (3/17/2024; PDF version; via Google Drive), here.

Update 1.2: Screenshot of state's four temporary regional homeless shelters cost breakdown sheet (received per my DCF public records request; 3/25/2024):

View Vermont DCF Temporary Homeless Shelter Public Records Request Documents (via Google Drive; received: March 25, 2024), here.

Update 2: Read blog posts posted by the Vermont Political Observer concerning these and related matters, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and, here.

Update 3: Thoughts of mine related to the money question that I shared with DCF Commissioner Chris Winters via email in reply to his response to my sending him the link to this blog post of mine this evening (excerpted and slightly edited for the purposes of clarification and readability):

[...]

…, it's rather strange to me that the administration would not have those figures to provide before launching such a program; doesn't bode well, if you ask me. 

The administration should have been prepared in advance to be asked such questions and, unless they had asked and you could not provide an answer at the time, I cannot believe no one from the press/media had asked either. It is a question any reasonable person would ask involving large sums of money (no?), particularly post-Watergate (i.e., "follow the money").

[...]

Could not resist mentioning the post-Watergate "follow the money" line (from the movie, All the President's Men). My bad. 

;-> (wink and grin) 

For those who might have missed it, somehow, view the related film clip from the movie:

Update 4: Believe it or not, this is reportedly the planned site location for the regional stand up homeless shelter in Berlin, here:

Update 4.1: Word is (if I understood correctly), from a highly informed and authoritative source is that, other than staff, no one who is unhoused and had been evicted by the state from the motel program on Friday showed up at the state's stand up Berlin homeless shelter site Friday night. However staff were staying put just in case someone were to show up late, even though it is currently technically after hours. About 25 or so people were able to have it arranged to stay in the motels, two have been housed in transitional beds and 28 might have otherwise possibly made other plans, unfortunately, their status and whereabouts are currently unknown.

Update 4.2 (posted late Saturday evening): Although the cutoff time is 11:00 PM for folks evicted by the state from the motels yesterday to access the state stand up shelter in Berlin, my source has informed me that no one has shown up there tonight either, yet.

In addition, besides the two who were put up at transitional beds last night, another source has informed me that two others stayed at the overflow shelter as well.

Update 4.3: Read a related blog post of mine, here.

Update 5: The Vermont DCF issued a press release today concerning these matters, which does not include information about the cost and source of funding for the stand up shelter program put in place by the state, here.

Update 5.1: Check out the DCF unsheltered homelessness informational, data and housing update page, here.

Update 6: Read an article about a documentary film concerning homelessness in Vermont (via Rutland Herald), here.

Check out more information about the film, Just Getting By, which is on tour now, here.

View the trailer for the film: