Plans are moving ahead in the Austin area to house about 200 people who are chronically homeless. Community First Village has been about a decade in the making and in just a matter of months, it will break ground.
The property is 27 acres, with little cottages, mobile homes and even some teepees dotting the landscape. A three-acre community garden is also on-site.
founder and CEO Tim League is one of the project鈥檚 staunchest supporters. In a nod to politics, He calls it 鈥渢he very first 鈥榶es, in my backyard鈥� project!鈥欌��
Mobile Loaves and Fishes鈥� Alan Graham, the man behind the project, says one reason many in the nearby community are on board is because there will also be a bed and breakfast in the village and an Alamo Drafthouse outdoor movie theater.
鈥淲e haven鈥檛 converted everybody, but when people come out here they go, 鈥極h!鈥� They see a chapel; they see medical and vocational services on site, and they learn that residents will not live there for free; they鈥檒l pay a monthly rent.鈥�
Graham adds that if 200 chronically homeless people get back on their feet, that could save Central Texas taxpayers about $10 million a year.
