Renovations for the Room at the Inn at the Audrain County Shelter Resource Coalition should be finished in time for this year’s three-month program.

Attendees saw an architectural drawing of the renovations at the ACSRC’s annual meeting last week. Renovations will be paid for by a Missouri Department of Economic Development revitalization grant, and during the meeting, held July 21, patrons got an update about happenings at the organization. At the meeting, Paula Smith was named Volunteer of the Year and Janelle Williams was named Board Member of the Year. 

For the renovations for the Room at the Inn,  bids are being accepted until 10 a.m. Aug. 11, said Ra’Vae Moore, ACSRC executive director, in an email. On that evening, she said, she and the executive board will meet and open the bids and make the selection. Officials from ACSRC hope renovations would begin shortly after that.

At the July 21 meeting, ACSRC Chair of the Board John Mathews led the discussion at the beginning of the event, providing a history of the organization, whose origins goes back a decade, and that it is largely a volunteer-led operation.

“We knew from day one that we could not be successful without the community support,” he said, noting that’s why the organization periodically opens the doors and invites the community to gain its feedback.  

“We also want you to know that this is an operation that it’s in motion and it’s not anywhere near finished,” he said. “If you were here a year ago, you would know that things look different than they did then. If you come back in a year, I promise you it’s going to look a lot different than it does now. We are at the cusp of some really exciting times.”

He explained the importance of the Room at the Inn and said it could not exist without community support, adding that the ACSRC is appealing to the community for financial help for the shelter. 

Room at the Inn is completely community supported, said Janelle Williams, board treasurer of the ACSRC, who spoke about the ongoing planning at the organization and how organization representatives want to hear input about the needs of the community.

“How can we better serve the community?” she said. “How can we continue to grow and continue to move forward? I think we have been doing (that) since our inception but specifically so over the last year.”

She said Room at the Inn needs $10,000 on average a month for operations, which covers a number of expenses, such as staffing and supplies. Room at the Inn runs December through February. ACSRC receives community support as well as Neighborhood Assistance Program tax credits, and grants are not used to operate the organization. The only grants that ACSRC receives are used to provide assistance to individuals, such as rental deposit fees and utility bills.

She said ACSRC’s shelter needed better accommodations, such as showers and laundry rooms, and the shelter did not have good work space. Needs were also found at the transitional housing and at the Laura Miller George Community Resource Center, and funding comes from a Missouri Department of Economic Development grant.

Eric Westhues from Westhues Architecture discussed the renovations at the meeting and said the project went out to bid last week and contractor bids will be received on Aug. 11. The renovations are part of three phases, Williams said, with the other two phases going to the Community Resource Center and some updates to transitional housing. 

“This is a really exciting project that’s the next phase (of the ACSRC) and we look forward to continuing to grow and provide services for the community,” Westhues said.

Williams said ACSRC officials want to have the renovations finished by Dec. 1. ACSRC must complete all three phases of the grant by Sept. 30, 2026. In the email, Moore said she and the  board are continuing to work on plans for transitional housing and the Community Resource Center. 

“There are no solid plans at this time as our main focus is completing renovations on Room at the Inn before December 1,” she said.