Domestic violence shelters forced to turn away victims

Domestic violence is forcing more Vermonters to seek emergency housing at the state's expense, turning hotels and motels into a major piece of the statewide safety net for victims.

The number jumped last year by 10 percent, far surpassing capacity at shelters designed for people fleeing domestic and sexual violence.

“We know we’re not meeting the need," said Auburn Watersong,  associate director of public policy for the Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence, in an interview earlier this year. "They’re ending up in hotels and motels or staying longer in our shelters. We have more bed nights this year than we’ve ever had before."

The state houses a large portion of domestic violence victims through the emergency housing system, which is perhaps best-known for bringing people off the streets into motels on the coldest winter days. State government also uses the system to provide hotel and motel rooms for domestic violence victims year-round when shelters are full.

Those motel rooms cost an average of $73 per night, and rooms for domestic violence victims cost the state $1.6 million last year alone.

“Folks are often going into the state’s emergency motel system because we don’t have room in our shelter,” said Kelly Dougherty, executive director of Steps to End Domestic Violence in Burlington. The organization runs a six-bedroom shelter, which is hardly sufficient to meet the need in Chittenden County.

“It’s rare that we’re not full,” Dougherty said.

Vermont's domestic violence shelters housed 773 people last year. But state government paid to house a greater number of people fleeing domestic violence in the most recent fiscal year — 824 adults and 834 children, according to data from the Vermont Department for Children and Families.

In the Rutland area, the state housed 306 children in families fleeing domestic violence, up from just 96 the prior year. Some parts of the state, such as Middlebury, lack any domestic violence shelters at all.

State officials don't fully understand why the need for domestic-violence emergency housing has risen.

Domestic violence victim advocates point to one reason: The lack of affordable housing in Vermont has created a bottleneck. Victims can't find permanent housing, so they stay longer in shelters. When shelters are full, other people seeking help have nowhere else to turn but the motel system.

Victims receive a state-paid motel voucher for up to 84 days. When time runs out, they must find a new place to stay.

“Most of them, when I ask them what their priorities are, look at me like, ‘housing, obviously,’” said Stephanie Smith, a Steps to End Domestic Violence employee who works with Chittenden County clients at hotels and motels.

But victims are lucky to find a new housing situation within 84 days, said Megan Foster, shelter and hotline manager for Steps to End Domestic Violence. It's hard to find an affordable vacant apartment.

Smith said some private landlords also discriminate against victims of domestic violence, though such discrimination is illegal.

“I’d say that there is a dearth of affordable housing for all people living in the Burlington area," said Craig Zumbrun, executive director of Burlington Housing Authority, who added, “With victims of domestic violence it adds another degree of difficulty because of the urgency.”

The Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence last year asked legislators to impose a $2 per night fee on each hotel room stay, which would have raised about $12 million per year. The advocacy group wanted $1 million to go toward transitional housing for victims of domestic and sexual violence.

“It’s going to take some upfront money to save money in the long run,” Watersong said at the time. Lawmakers were  hesitant to impose a new fee, and they sidelined the proposal.

Social service organizations are eager to see more affordable housing across the state.

But until there's enough housing to meet the need, some domestic violence organizations, including Steps to End Domestic Violence, are trying to ensure that victims receive support even when they stay in a motel.

“What we know to be true is that most often survivors are isolated," said Vickie Sterling, executive director at the Women’s Freedom Center in Brattleboro. “If they leave, and they’re not able to come in a shelter, they’re in a motel, and that’s another form of isolation.”

Contact April Burbank at 802-660-1863 or aburbank@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/AprilBurbank
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