The D.C. General Hospital building, which is now used as a homeless shelter. Photo via Google Street View.
Families who live at a former hospital turned decrepit shelter will rally alongside their advocates tonight at D.C. General.
Amy Vruno of the Washington Interfaith Network says dozens of people have met with families in the past six weeks to find out what their priorities are for the shelter. That led to tonight’s rally, which will begin at 6:30 p.m. “They wanted a rally, and they wanted to see allies on site,” she said.
Some of these priorities include simple things like fixing flooding in the elevator, rat abatement and improving food quality. More complex is the demand to house 500 additional families in 100 days, construct a privately-funded playground and upgrade security.
Vruno says the Council has been invited to attend, as have staff members from the Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness, which runs D.C. General. An estimated five people have committed to come, Vruno says, but not the executive director, Sue Marshall.
Community Partnership Chief of Staff Peter Banks, however, said he could not verify that any employees would be in attendance.
WIN yesterday met with Cornell Chappelle, Director of Operations for the Community Partnership, and Banks to discuss conditions at the shelter. According to notes from the meeting provided by WIN, Marshall has not met with D.C. General residents to discuss the Relisha Rudd case, which the Community Partnership declined to call an abduction or kidnapping.
Relisha was last seen on March 1. Police believe she was abducted by shelter janitor Kahlil Tatum, who was found dead of an apparent suicide in late March. Relisha is still missing, and police fear the worst. A vigil was held at the shelter on March 22.
WIN says they asked if a Fox 5 report on living conditions at D.C. General, including moldy bread served to residents, will lead to an internal investigation. According to the notes, it will not.
Banks said in a call that WIN brought up broad concerns, but no specifics were provided. He said the Community Partnership “repeatedly” told WIN that the Director of the Shelter and the Deputy Director of the Shelter have an open door policy on site, and a complaint hotline is posted throughout the facility.
He declined to comment on if there are any open investigations into living conditions at the moment.
