A date has been set for the arrival of the Sunshine Coast’s first ‘sleep bus’, a confronting but much-needed weapon in the battle against homelessness.
It is just one of the solutions to the region’s growing emergency and will be used as a mobile shelter for men sleeping rough.
Maroochy Neighbourhood Centre’s Derek Hopper told Sunshine Coast News the bus, which will be a godsend for up to 20 men per night, was “99 per cent complete and due to arrive in the region on January 14”.
A recent survey, conducted by the charity group, showed there were 62 people sleeping rough each night within a 5km radius of the centre. Males made up 76 per cent of the homeless population and females 24 per cent.
In an effort to address the Sunshine Coast’s worsening crisis, the centre last year began a fundraising campaign after it identified a lack of male crisis accommodation.
Support grew with a series of articles in sunshinecoastnews.com.au, including the push for the Coast’s first sleep bus.
Since then, a fundraising campaign was also launched to fund a pink bus to sleep women and children.
Mr Hopper said after multiple COVID-induced delays in Melbourne, where the bus was sent in April to be reconfigured at a specialist workshop, it would soon be on its way to the Coast.
“The bus is due to begin its trip up on January 11, ready for a celebration at Maroochy Neighbourhood Centre on January 14,” Mr Hopper said.
“It is just waiting on a few final touches and the signage, so it is 99.99 per cent finished.”
Once the first sleep bus arrives, the second bus will be taken back down to Victoria to be transformed into the women’s and children’s mobile home.
Each vehicle costs $100,000 to transform and the Maroochy Neighbourhood Centre has been overwhelmed with community support in raising money to transform the two buses, which were also donated.
Once transformed, each bus will provide safe, lockable pods with a television, charging ports and a toilet.
The most recent donation came from local business owner David Krauter, who has witnessed the homeless living on the streets around his office premises.
Mr Krauter, from Websites That Sell, is donating $5000 toward the sleep bus project.
“There’s just not enough funding to support the homeless and the testimony to that is just seeing them in the park near our previous office,” Mr Krauter said.
“We had people with stashes of their belongings all around our premises at the time.
“Just imagine not being able to sleep because you’re worrying that your life and safety is at stake, but also that your belongings are going to be gone the next morning when you wake up.”
Mr Hopper said with the rental crisis worsening, each week the centre was seeing more people in need of support.
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“It’s got worse. We’ve got families with two or three kids now sleeping in their cars because landlords want to sell their place or put the rent up $200 a week and wages have not gone up to match that.
“It’s no longer just those with a low income who are homeless, it’s hitting the middle and working class.
“If you are married or de facto and one of you loses your job, that’s it, you’re maybe a couple of payments away from being homeless.
“We have people walk through the door in tears, they just don’t know what to do.”
To help the centre support homeless people, go to maroochync.org.au
