A day shelter for Durham’s unhoused population is on its way, after many years of planning.
Last week, the Durham Board of County Commissioners authorized the county manager to sign a one-year contract with Urban Ministries of Durham (UMD), which will operate a day shelter and services center as a pilot program, and approved funding for it during its February 9 meeting.
Durham’s existing shelters offer a place for the homeless population to stay during the night, leaving people to seek out other areas, like libraries, during the day. The day shelter will provide a gap in existing services, offering access to washers and dryers, showers, internet, charging stations, and mail during the day. It will also house services to help people exit homelessness, offering case management and resource navigation, behavioral health support, and workforce development.
The day shelter will give homeless Durhamites a place to go and access resources in between those shelter stays, UMD Director Sheldon Mitchell said, but it won’t take away from UMD’s existing services, which provide emergency shelter, food, and clothes to those in need.
The pilot program will allow UMD to add four people to its staff to run the day shelter and services center. It will operate in the community cafe of UMD’s current building downtown, Mitchell said, with UMD prepared to host 25 to 30 neighbors at one time.
The contract gives UMD until May to get the shelter up and running, but Mitchell said he expects it to be operational by April 1. The day shelter will be open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, for 39 consecutive weeks.
“This is going to be an opportunity to bring such a resource to the community, and especially at a time when issues are more and more challenging, and it seems like the need for such a service is critical,” Mitchell said.
Wendy Jacobs, a Durham County commissioner, said the need for a day shelter in Durham has been “apparent for a very long time.”
“This is a moment in time when a lot of different things are coming together in a really good way in Durham, in terms of addressing and strengthening our (Homelessness Services) system,” Jacobs said.
Durham has explored the idea of a day shelter for a few years, she said. In 2021, the county received American Rescue Plan Act funds to expand homelessness services. Jacobs advocated for putting $350,000 toward a day shelter.
Approval of the day shelter also comes as the city and county are in the final stages of developing a strategic plan to end homelessness, and with the city moving Homeless Services under the Community Safety Department last year, Jacobs noted.
The pilot program has two goals: to create an easily accessible place for shelter during the day and support Durham’s homeless population in moving toward stable housing. Jacobs said it will be important to see how the day shelter helps Durham’s diverse unhoused population and that it won’t be a “one-size-fits-all” solution.
“There’s a whole spectrum of people,” Jacobs said. “And what is not acceptable is for people to be living out in the woods, or on the streets of our community, or having to just find shelter in our libraries. That is not acceptable. I’m very hopeful that the day center is really going to make a difference in us helping to solve this problem in our community and care for people in the way they deserve and need to be cared for.”
According to city data, 1,432 Durhamites were experiencing homelessness as of December 31. From 2024 to 2025, UMD reported housing 636 people in its shelter, serving 263,588 meals, and distributing 144,802 pounds of food. The same UMD report found there has been a 300% increase in unsheltered homelessness in Durham since 2018.
UMD’s current emergency shelter serves about 100 people each night, housing single men and women, along with its nine family rooms, Mitchell said. The nonprofit also offers a food pantry and clothing closet, in addition to a community cafe that serves three meals a day, seven days a week. These services will continue as the day shelter becomes operational.
Mitchell said UMD is hoping to provide enrichment services, such as substance education classes, health awareness sessions, or job resources for the day shelter. He said UMD will work with community partners, such as Open Table Ministries, to provide them.
In June 2025, UMD lost two federal grants, causing the shelter to lay off seven full and part-time employees so it could maintain all its services. The cuts came a month after UMD proposed a plan to the Durham County commissioners to expand its services to a new multifloor building.
Despite those cuts, UMD is still planning to expand. Mitchell said there is a “strong need” for newer facilities so that UMD can offer non-congregate emergency shelter for individuals and a “more properly designed space” for its other services.
After the contract is up, Mitchell said UMD would like to continue offering the day shelter.
“I have a great expectation that we’ll be able to continue this after the pilot,” Mitchell said. “And eventually that this will be either a standalone sort of program that’s offered in community, or it will be a part of a bigger, planned new facility for Urban Ministries.”
Samantha Smith, the Homeless Services Special Projects coordinator for Durham County, said there have been multiple requests from local government committees and Durham’s downtown business community to create a day shelter and services center.
Smith said the city and county’s new strategic framework to prevent and end homelessness is centered on achieving a July 2031 goal of “functional zero:” moving more homeless Durhamites to stable housing than are entering or staying in homelessness on a monthly basis.
One step to the plan is offering the day shelter.
“We’re early on in this process, and so at this point, our goal is to get this sort of first step up and running, this first step of the day shelter and services center, have it run well, track its success, and then we’ll have those future conversations about possible expansion,” Smith said.
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