MORGANTOWN — A lot can change in a week.
For example, it seemed pretty clear following Morgantown City Council’s Sept. 30 work session that Hazel’s House of Hope was the preferred option of city staff and the most likely choice to once again house the community’s emergency warming shelter.
On Wednesday, Monongalia County Commission President Jeff Arnett – who represents the commission on the Morgantown Community Resources board that oversees the Hazel’s House facility – said that is no longer the case.
“I had a call this morning about the warming shelter. I’m happy to announce that a consensus has been agreed to that the priority first option will be the facility on West Run Road,” Arnett said. “That building is still being completed. Some renovations are in order to make it accessible, but the goal is to have the warming shelter there, and MCR, the board that runs Hazel’s House of Hope, is fully in support of that.”
The West Run facility in question was identified as a potential site during the aforementioned work session.
It sits on 3.14 acres and was purchased by Bartlett House Inc. in 2010 for $1,583,200 according to information available through the Monongalia County Assessor’s office.
Bartlett House began bringing portions of the facility online starting in 2012. In 2016, a grand opening was held for Nitor Apartments with the goal of housing a 36-bed bridge program for chronically homeless individuals on the ground floor and supportive, permanent housing apartments upstairs.
In 2024, facing severe financial issues, Bartlett Housing Solutions was ultimately forced to turn over operations of its emergency shelter in Hazel’s House of Hope to Catholic Charities West Virginia. A short time later, the West Virginia Coalition to End Homelessness announced it was taking over operations of the West Run facility.
Last winter – shortly after CCWV began ramping up operations at the rebranded Grace Shelter in Hazel’s House of Hope – the agency stepped forward to take on the emergency warming shelter using additional space within the Scott Avenue facility.
Should the West Run plan ultimately move forward, it would be a combination of those two agencies – CCWV and WVCEH – that would operate and staff the cold weather shelter.
Asked about Wednesday’s announcement, CCWV Executive Director Mark Phillips said nothing has been finalized at this point.
“We have been closely working with WVCEH to best address the needs of our unsheltered neighbors this winter and hope to have a final plan in place soon,” he said.
As both are miles from the city’s center, transportation is an obstacle at both the Hazel’s House and West Run facilities, particularly in the evenings after buses stop running.
While Mountain Line does service Hazel’s House of Hope as part of its Don Knotts route, preliminary discussions have indicated the West Run location presents additional challenges.
Mountain Line Executive Director Maria Smith said she was contacted late Tuesday about the new preferred location and is in the process of formulating a response.
Arnett indicated volunteers have stepped forward to assist with transportation, if needed.
Further, he said Hazel’s House of Hope remains a backup option as a shelter site if the West Run plan falls through.
