BOSTON (WWLP) – The state has been seeing an increase of migrants and those struggling to find housing.
The state is looking to expand capacity for migrants and those experiencing homelessness as options on where to seek shelter shrink. The Healey Administration said last week that more centers to help those in need will launch shortly.
However, no details of where these “family welcome centers” will be located have been released. A spokesperson for Healey said that the administration is working with “local, state, federal and community partners” to grow housing availability within the coming weeks.
It was just a few weeks ago that the state announced they were opening a family welcome center at the Brazilian Worker Center in Allston. There, migrants and those experiencing homelessness were provided with basic resources. Some of those families were moved temporarily to Joint Base Cape Cod.
Massachusetts is known as a right to shelter state, the only one in the country in fact, and it has seen a surge of migrants in recent years. The state has had to expand its emergency shelter system each month since September of 2022 to meet demand.
Governor Healey’s Office Spokesperson Karissa Hand said in a statement sent to 22News, “Our administration does everything in our power to ensure families have a safe place to stay each night and we utilize all resources and options at our disposal, whether that’s at Joint Base Cape Cod, hotels or other sites based on availability. We continue to work with partners to expand shelter and intake capacity and advance long-term solutions to this crisis.”
Migrant families were allowed to seek shelter at Boston Medical Center, but that is no longer an option either. The Joint Base Cape Cod is currently at capacity with 62 families.
