Lewiston Mayor Carl Sheline speaks Thursday during the announcement that MaineHousing awarded Kaydenz Kitchen $2.5 million to be used for a permanent shelter. The announcement was made at the winter warming center in Lewiston, which is operated by Kaydenz Kitchen. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

LEWISTON — The nonprofit Kaydenz Kitchen has been awarded $2.5 million from MaineHousing toward an effort to stand up a permanent homeless shelter in the city.

The news came during an event at the former Schemengees Bar & Grille that was planned as a media tour and unofficial ribbon cutting for the winter warming center, which opened last week. But the announcement of the grant award led to jubilation among the crowd, as its considered a major achievement in a yearslong goal of developing a permanent, 24-hour, low-barrier shelter in Lewiston.

Earlier this year, Kaydenz Kitchen was selected by the City Council to operate a future permanent shelter, with those involved hoping to have the shelter up and running by September 2025.

The funding is part of $7.7 million in grant awards announced Thursday by MaineHousing, with 22 different entities receiving grants aimed at long-term solutions to homelessness.

MaineHousing fielded $34 million worth of requests statewide, making the funds extremely competitive. The Lewiston award, however, was the largest by far, with the next highest award — $840,000 — going to the Mid-Maine Homeless Shelter & Services in Waterville.

In a statement Thursday, Eric Jorgensen, senior director of government relations at MaineHousing, said Kaydenz Kitchen “crushed it” in its application for the funds, and that it’s been a long time coming for Maine’s second largest city to see momentum toward a permanent, 24-hour shelter.

When the announcement was made, Kevin Boilard, who was standing nearby, became visibly emotional.

Kevin Boilard wipes away a tear Thursday after an announcement was made by MaineHousing that Kaydenz Kitchen was awarded $2.5 million to be used for a permanent shelter. The announcement was made during a news conference at the winter warming center in Lewiston. Boilard is the founder of Kaydenz Kitchen. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

Boilard, the founder of Kaydenz Kitchen, called the funding award “our Mount Everest moment,” and said the reuse of Schemengees shows “triumph through tragedy.” He said the building will now save lives through Maine’s most challenging months.

Following the award announcement, Boilard posted a statement on the Kaydenz Kitchen social media page that said the Kaydenz Kitchen team has spent the past several years working toward “a 24/7 permanent shelter solution.”

He said the shelter will be Androscoggin County’s first shelter of its kind, providing “full wrap-around services, coordinated entry assessments, housing navigation, connection to service providers, and the shelter guests won’t be required to leave during the day.”

Lewiston currently has six shelters, including one for youth and one for victims of domestic violence. However, none are considered “low-barrier” due to requirements such as participation in religious services, and none are open during daytime hours.

This year the organization shifted its winter warming center operation to the 551 Lincoln St. location, and also believes it would be an ideal location for the permanent shelter. However, that decision will be left to city officials.

In a news release about the grant funding, MaineHousing Director Dan Brennan said the grants include some “new, innovative and collaborative approaches that will bring services to parts of Maine, including significant population centers like Lewiston and Auburn, that are lacking the resources they need to adequately respond to homelessness in their communities.”

Homeless advocates have been fighting for years to bring Lewiston to the point of developing a 24-hour, low-barrier shelter, and the funding award Thursday has made that dream a reality.

Mayor Carl Sheline said the city has “come a long way from fighting a (shelter) moratorium to today’s watershed announcement of funding for a permanent shelter.”

“The dawn is breaking for us,” he said. “I’m grateful to MaineHousing, Governor Mills and those who have tirelessly advocated for our unhoused neighbors.”

The MaineHousing funding is part of Maine’s Emergency Housing Relief Fund, which received further funding by Mills and the Maine Legislature earlier this year.

During the opening remarks, Councilor David Chittim said the opening of the warming center is evidence of Lewiston’s commitment “not to turn a blind eye to the struggles unfolding in our community.”

“Homelessness is not only an individual plight — it echoes through public spaces, health care systems, law enforcement and overall quality of life,” he said. “The financial cost of inaction far exceeds the investment required for proactive solutions.”

Also receiving funding from MaineHousing on Thursday was the Immigrant Resource Center of Maine, which was awarded $297,333 to provide housing stability services.