Bridgeport City Councilwoman advocates for tiny houses for the homeless

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Bridgeport City Councilwoman advocates for tiny houses for the homeless

WSHU | By Ebong Udoma

Published November 29, 2022 at 6:43 AM EST

In this photo taken Thursday, Nov. 9, 2017, Eva Stough opens the door to her tiny house, where she lives with her partner and baby, at a homeless encampment in Seattle. Tiny homes could be the solution to all kinds of housing needs, offering warmth and security for the homeless, an affordable option for expensive big cities and simplicity for people who want to declutter their lives. However, that seemingly broad support fails to translate into acceptance when tiny home developers try to build next door. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

Bridgeport City Council Majority Leader Jeanette Herron is pushing for her city to tackle homelessness by partnering to build tiny homes.

After seeing how it鈥檚 being used to house homeless veterans during a recent National League of Cities Summit in Kansas City, Herron said she鈥檚 intrigued by the concept.

鈥淚 tried to see what each district is doing to try to help the homeless," Herron said. "If they have wrap around programs. If they have dormitory setting type homes for them 鈥� tiny homes. So, that was something that was very big for me."

Herron added that Bridgeport would not be able to build and operate such homes on its own. 鈥淎 city should not be where we take on rentals or take on homes. It has to be a private partnership as well. And I think that鈥檚 what I got out of that.鈥�

The city would also need to partner with the state and federal governments.

The Tiny House Project is a national nonprofit corporation that builds emergency tiny house shelters for the homeless.

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