The Liberty County Re-Entry Coalition is seeking reentry housing partners to help them serve recently released and paroled prisoners who return to the Liberty County area.

Currently the LCRC has one Reentry Housing Partner, the Kirk Healing Center.

"But their capacity is just for six," LCRC Executive Director Daisy Jones said. "And the goal is to have more providers in our area."

Representatives of the LCRC along with several Faith-based organizations and potential housing partners recently attended a RHP workshop given by Department of Community Supervision Housing Coordinator Erin Anderson.

The lecture was held at the Coastal Workforce center in Savannah.

Jones said the event was well attended especially by those she invited which could help the LCRC develop more local resources.

She noted representatives from Hinesville attended the event to see if there was a way they could become involved to the benefit of those in need.

"We refer quite a few (recently released) to the city’s housing program," Jones said. "We’ve also been able to refer people to get rapidly re-housed."

Anderson said that the program allows inmates who are scheduled to be released to have somewhere secure to go instead of ending up homeless.

She said many inmates who have no place to go will often stay in prison even after their parole date due to not having housing.

Anderson said that costs the state more money.

She said it costs $51.19 per day to house an inmate compared to only $4.32 to supervise a parolee.

Re-Entry Housing Partner’s are compensated $600 per month for a term not to exceed three months.

The fee covers rent and food that must be provided to the tenant.

After the three months, residents leave the program or may work out a separate agreement with a landlord and pay their own rent.

The properties must be owned or leased.

If the property is leased the landlord must give written consent to use the property for the program’s purposes.

The property can be residential homes, apartments or dorm-style quarters.

Anderson said there is an application process and RHP providers must pass a background check and meet certain criteria.

There is also a housing criteria that must be met to include 60 square feet of usable floor space per residents in multiple use bedrooms or 80 square feet in single rooms.

Tenants must be provided their own place for personal storage and their own bed, pillows and blankets.

Housing providers that are part of faith-Based organizations may not engage in inherently religious activities as a part of the funded program.

Religious activities must be offered separately in time or location from other program or services and must be voluntary for the tenant.

Anderson added the parolees and recently released must also fit a certain criteria.

The program is not open to registrable sex offenders or anyone who has new pending charges or are current detainees.

Certain serious offenses also exclude parolees and released inmates from having the option of using RHP.

For more information on becoming a RHP provider visit the Liberty County Re-Entry Coalition’s web-site at: http://www.libertyreentry.org/