Care 66 provides safe harbor when needed

Contractors pull a section of metal roofing up onto the top of an apartment unit Tuesday as work continues on the Chuska Apartments on Aztec Avenue in Gallup. [Photo by Jeff Jones/Independent]

By Bill Donovan
Staff writer

GALLUP — With Thanksgiving just around the corner, Gallupians are finding themselves in the season of caring once again.

But for Sanjay Choudhrie, caring is something that he does 12 months a year.

Choudhrie is director of Care 66, a group that sprang up in 2004 with a goal to create Gallup’s first day center for the homeless. While the idea generated a wide degree of interest and support, it’s size doomed it, at least at this time.

Instead, using grants from governmental entities and various foundations, Care 66 has set about making Gallup a less hostile place for the many homeless who roam through the streets on a daily basis.

You could say that Care 66 had its roots in the mind of former Mayor Bob Rosebrough, who shortly in his administration created a task force to look at the problems of Gallup’s homeless. He committee decided that one of the things it could do was form itself into a nonprofit organization to deal with some of the homeless issues.

The first proposal was to create a center where the homeless could go during the day to get services, such as a place to do their laundry or take a shower. Various organizations that deal with the homeless would also be located there, including counseling services and agencies that would help the homeless find a place to live or work.

Large cities have places like this, Choudhrie said, but it proved to be too big and too expensive a proposal so the program set its sight on getting the homeless into homes.
It’s big project right now is a 30-unit Chuska Apartment Complex that is expected to cost $8.2 million when it is completed next year. The funding came from a variety of sources including a federal program that provided $6.2 million through tax credits.

This is a concept that has worked successfully in Colorado with some of the apartments to be used to house the homeless for anywhere from one to six months to give a person a chance to get a job and get back on their feet.

Once they do, they would be eligible to rent the apartment for a monthly fee that will be based on their income.

Which brings up the question: just how many homeless are there in Gallup?

A study done a decade or so ago by the Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments came up with the figure of 5,000, which the study said was the number of people who experience homelessness at one time or another during the year.

But Choudhrie said his research indicated that on one given night, the number was 86.

Care 66 also has a grant to convert eight units in an apartment building on Verdi Drive into low-rent units, which would be used for veterans and their families.

“Thirty percent of the homeless population are veterans,” Choudhrie said.

There are talks going on for the agency to purchase the old Ricca Mercantile building in downtown Gallup.

Choudhrie said if a deal can be made, Care 66 wants to convert the building into efficiency apartments for senior citizens.

“This is a perfect location for senior citizens,” he said, pointing out that there are restaurants and grocery stores within easy walking distance.

And while the focus of the organization is helping the homeless, Choudhrie points out that everyone in Gallup benefits from the work the group does because of the jobs that have been created — fox example, the construction jobs at the Chuska Apartment project — and the fact that the company pays gross receipts taxes — $230,000 on the Chuska project alone.

Which is probably appropriate since the group depends heavily on private donations to pay for its operating costs.
“It cost $280,000 last year to keep our doors open,” he said, “and only $75,000 came from grants. The rest came from the people of Gallup.”

Donations from the private sector have ranged from just a few dollars to one for $25,000, he said.

Donating is easy. You can either call the organization up at (505) 722-0066 or contact Choudhrie by e-mail at Sanjay@care66.org. The office is located at 2407 Boyd Ave., No. 11.