Permanent Housing: Serenity Place and Beyond
Once ready for independent living Marian House scattered site Shelter Plus Care program and Serenity Place are permanent housing options for some Marian House women. Marian House permanent housing placements include case management and access to support services such as educational and employment assistance as needed. Rental assistance is provided to the residents through a Shelter Plus Care grant received by Marian House. This grant ensures that rent payments are not more then 30% of the families’ annual income.
In the scattered site program, women and often families are assisted with finding suitable housing with the help of Marian House staff, and in these situations Marian House enters into a rental agreement with the landlord of an apartment or home in Baltimore City. With the assistance of rental subsidies, women and families are able to live independently despite the rise in rental costs in Baltimore.
Serenity Place is located at 932 Gorsuch Avenue, across the street from our program center. The site is an old school building that was renovated as part of a joint effort between Homes for America, Inc. and Marian House. Homes for America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit housing corporation which specializes in developing and preserving housing for low and moderate income households and special needs populations.
Serenity Place offers affordable permanent housing to Marian House residents and other low-income persons who are not financially able to enter the general housing market. The facility’s housing capacity is 14 one-bedroom and 5 two-bedroom apartment units.
The permanent housing programs offer Marian House graduates a continuation of stability, community support, and high-quality case management to which they have become accustomed. The scattered sites and Serenity Place Case Managers play a crucial role in meeting this objective.
The case managers meets regularly with residents in their homes/apartments (at least once a month, and more frequently as needed). She/he facilitates group workshops on personal development and wellness that cover such topics as stress management, exercise, nutrition, and positive relationship building. She/he connects residents to appropriate services including relapse prevention, mental health treatment, transportation, and parenting classes. She/he maintains relationships with various collaborating agencies in the community that can provide residents with services like health care, financial counseling and after school/summer activities for children.
