PLANS for a much-needed homeless shelter in the Redlands are being held up by expensive paperwork.
Night Ninjas founder Alix Russo, whose organisation feeds and clothes those living on the streets, said a $3000 financial audit was needed before the incorporated association could begin applying for grant monies.
The cost is something Night Ninjas can’t afford, with every dollar received used for the purchase of swags, toiletries and more.
A Go Fund Me page has now been set up to raise the funds.
Ms Russo said while raising the $3000 could take time, the wait would be worth it.
She said the financial audit would not only allow Night Ninjas to apply for grants but also for charitable status to enable tax-free donations.
It would also mean the association, which became incorporated last year, could pay lease fees for shelter sites.
Financial audits are a standard reporting requirement for the operation of incorporated associations.
Ms Russo said homeless accommodation was desperately needed in the Redlands in the absence of other types of readily-available emergency housing.
“It is completely bursting at the seems,” she said.
“People are living in their cars or in the bushes and are forced to live in places you wouldn’t dream of living.”
Ms Russo said the rising costs of rent meant living on the streets was sometimes the only option for bereaved seniors unable to survive on a single pension.
She said homelessness was something that happened more often than commonly thought, with 22 families from Alexandra Hills presently waiting for crisis accommodation.
“Housing is expensive and there is not enough to meet the demand,” she said.
Cleveland has more people experiencing homeless than other suburbs in the Redlands.
Ms Russo said those living in survival mode in their cars or on the streets needed amenities to be in close proximity, which was something offered within the Cleveland CBD.
She said every dollar or donation from the community helped.
Ms Russo said once a financial audit had been completed and lodged, the services of a grant writer, pledged free-of-charge by Victoria Point’s Bendigo Bank, would be employed.
To find out more about Night Ninjas, click here.
