A women’s shelter in Hendersonville has riled residents. Problems went under the radar until Mainstay went before the zoning board seeking to expand its facilities. Neighbors showed up to a planning board compatibility meeting to complain that the shelter has not been a good neighbor. Clientele have been hanging out in the streets and on city benches, smooching, smoking, cussing, tossing trash, and letting their children run wild. Residents don’t like the commotion, and business owners say it’s bad for the tourist trade.
Mainstay’s Executive Director Tanya Blackford argues the problems are caused by homeless teens and the mentally ill who are turned away from the shelter. “That’s not a mainstay issue,” she said. “That’s a city or a county issue.” Among other things, the expansion would provide a 500 sq. ft. greenspace for focusing congregational efforts. (I’m making fun of the Synergese dialect.) To further quell neighborly concerns, curfews have been rolled forward. Neighbors are still clamoring for more security for the women. In today’s lexicography, that means they will have to take their shoes off and go through a naked body scanner.
Hendersonville’s main concern seems to be that the shelter is 140 feet too close to another shelter. Ordinances require a separation of 1500 feet.
