In a bid to ease the fallout from the financial crisis, the municipality of Volos, in Greece’s Thessaly region, wants to use vacant buildings to house the city’s homeless population.
At the same time, municipal officials are creating a record of the men and women who sleep in the streets. So far, only 16 people have been listed, including one family. The homeless will be accommodated in abandoned properties which are found to be in decent condition. Also, an eight-room homeless shelter funded by the municipality will be made available in the next few weeks, while a bank has offered to provide two buildings for those in need.
Ordinary people have also joined the effort. “A private individual has offered to provide a 60 square meter property in good condition,” municipal official Vassilis Kontorizos told. “All it needs is a paint job.” A 70-year-old man was found dead inside a disused freezer in Volos last month.
Source: Kathimerini
