The next major piece in addressing homelessness is now open in Northeast Dallas, as an old hotel remodel is creating new opportunities for those who call it home.
Anthony Armstrong has seen a lot of situations.
“This is my first time being in this type of situation, whatever this situation is.”
The self-described Iraq war vet says he left his job at a Veterans Affairs hospital in Denver during the pandemic after suffering from complications from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
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“It kind of just threw me into like this mental spiral, and so, I quit working for about two years,” Armstrong said.
He arrived in Dallas earlier this year with no place to live but with plenty of faith.
“If you need it, just ask, and it will be provided,” Armstrong said.
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After a few months in a downtown shelter, Armstrong is now a month and a half into living at St. Jude Center - Vantage Point, just south of I-635 near Greenville Avenue, which celebrated its grand opening on Tuesday. Residents like Armstrong began moving in earlier this year.
It’s a former hotel that the city of Dallas and Dallas County combined to purchase for $7 million in 2023 and turn into permanent supportive housing.
Dave Woodyard is CEO of Catholic Charities Dallas, which operates as property management at what is now the third St. Jude Center in Dallas. All three centers have the same mission.
“The only requirement to be is to be formerly homeless,” Woodyard said.
The facility creates a single-site solution: a safe, quiet place to call home, paid for through federal housing vouchers combined with access to mental health services, transportation, and job placements in one location.
“Many that come here are seniors, veterans and others that have experienced some horrible traumas in their life and it’s a long road to recovery,” Woodyard said. “It’s not an easy step out, if you will. So, this gives them that safe environment.”
A fourth St. Jude Center is set to open late next year or early 2026 in Oak Cliff.
Woodyard adds that about 700 neighbors who previously stayed in shelters or on the streets have found housing so far, and the need continues to grow.
“The numbers going forward are really hard to predict,” Woodyard said. “Right now, we could have another ten St. Jude centers, and it would make a huge dent, but it wouldn’t be the total solution.”
For Armstrong, he adds if life is like a movie, he’s just in a new scene.
“You want to see a couple of downs to see how that person works out of it. So, I’m getting ready for my biopic,” he says. “I just have faith that things will work out for me.”
