When will long-delayed Warner Robins homeless shelter open? What we know

Warner Robins city officials say a homeless shelter that has been in the works for more than two years and delayed multiple times may finally be completed this summer.

Warner Robins Mayor LaRhonda Patrick said Haven Hope House will be the first city-run homeless shelter in Warner Robins, fulfilling one of her major campaign promises. When completed, the shelter will have 50 beds and offer medical services, meals and resources to find housing and employment.

“This is a dream project, a passion project, but also a necessity in the community,” Patrick said.

However, the shelter’s completion and opening have been delayed twice as the city struggled to secure labor and ran into unexpected issues with the building. Initially slated to open in mid-2024, the shelter’s opening was pushed to April of this year, and is now slated to be completed this summer and open in the fall.

What held up construction?

The city of Warner Robins’ Haven Hope House has been in progress since 2022, when the city purchased a building at 79 Green Street for about $170,000, officials said. In order to turn it into a shelter, Warner Robins kicked off plans in January 2023 to renovate the building and add an addition for more space.

However, the city encountered a number of challenges that delayed the project.

The city initially planned to save on labor costs by having skilled laborers and firms donate their time through the Builders United in Uplifting Dreams program, where the city would provide materials to the volunteer workers.

Brothers Stucco, a Warner Robins-based construction company, provided some labor under the supervision of a city employee, Patrick said, but the city struggled to find adequate volunteers due to the scale and nature of the project.

Patrick said that because the project is a commercial building, it is subject to more regulations and requires skilled workers for construction, unlike residential buildings which may rely on amateur laborers.

Finding enough skilled workers to volunteer to finish the project proved challenging due to the project’s timeline and the demand for skilled labor in the community. In October 2024, Warner Robins City Administrator James Drinkard and other officials decided to bring in a traditional construction firm to speed up the process.

Pro Construction of Georgia, a contractor based in Macon, won the bid for the project in December 2024, city records show. They began working on the building in January of this year.

Officials said they earmarked about $998,000 for the project, with about $898,000 of that going towards the contract with Pro Construction of Georgia. Another $100,000 was set aside for “unforeseen contingencies.”

Patrick said they anticipated bringing in a contractor to finish the project, but hoped to get more volunteers before resorting to that.

“We were always planning on bringing in a contractor, we just wanted them to come in with the lowest scope of work possible,” Patrick said.

Haven Hope House also experienced delays because workers discovered additional issues that extended the timeline for completion, according to Patrick. The building’s roof required a full replacement, which slowed the project.

What’s left to be done?

Despite the challenges, construction on Haven Hope House is still ongoing. Shiny floors and freshly painted walls are visible through the building’s windows, and Patrick said all that’s left to do is for workers to install fixtures like lights, toilets and sinks.

Once construction on the building finishes, Patrick said community members have already volunteered to help bring in furniture and organize supplies prior to Haven Hope House’s opening.

“It’s going to be more of setting up the space instead of building the space,” Patrick said.

While she doesn’t have a specific estimate, Patrick said Haven Hope House will finish construction and open as an overnight shelter sometime this summer. The facility will have a hard launch and begin offering a full slate of services in the fall.

Patrick said that while the city plans to work with a partner to manage the shelter, it is still in talks with multiple nonprofit organizations to determine who that will be and how much it will cost.

“We’re really excited about the ability to transform lives,” Patrick said. “Knowing we’re going to have a place that benefits the entire community really makes me proud.”

This story was originally published June 9, 2025 at 10:25 AM.