GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Mel Trotter Ministries has broken ground on a new tiny home village aimed at helping people experiencing homelessness in Grand Rapids.
The project, named Hope Village, will consist of 16 tiny homes ranging from 400 to 530 square feet along Garden Avenue. Each unit will be fully equipped with a kitchen, bathroom and stackable washer and dryer.
Chris Palusky, CEO of Mel Trotter Ministries, said, "This is one of the possibilities that somebody could move in to, that person or family who is experiencing homelessness."
To keep costs down on the $3.5 million project, parts of the houses will be built at Next Step of West Michigan, a division of Mel Trotter Ministries. David Bult, Next Step executive director, explained, "Working together to provide cabinetry that's built here in our manufacturing program to build the wall panels that's built in our carpentry program."
Former Grand Rapids Mayor Rosalynn Bliss, a housing advocate, praised the concept: "I actually have loved that concept of tiny homes for a long time. If you look at cities across the country, they are far ahead of us when it comes to tiny home developments in order to support housing for individuals who have been unsheltered."
Residents of Hope Village will be required to pay rent and will receive support in saving for a down payment on their own home. Palusky emphasized, "A certain percentage of what they make would have to go into the rent, so that it's not just a free house but it's a house that they have skin in the game with too."
While acknowledging that this project alone won't solve homelessness, Palusky sees it as part of a larger solution. "We see this tiny home village is one of the solutions, but it's... We've got to do this all together. It's got to be an ecosystem and a community approach," he says.
The first 10 homes of Hope Village are scheduled to be completed by the end of 2025.
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