Anne St. Village in Salisbury Ribbon Cutting Celebration

Today marked the ribbon cutting celebration of Anne St. Village — a housing community for Salisbury locals struggling with homelessness.  Idea was originally pitched in August of 2021 by the former Manager of Homeless Services Christine Chestnut. A few weeks later it was approved by the former Mayor of Salisbury Jake Day.

“Anne St. Village is apart of our housing first initiative,” Heath said. “An approach that is grounded in the belief that housing is the foundation for life improvement.”

Salisbury Mayor Jack Heath says this project will give our un-housed neighbors stability, allowing them to improve their mental and physical health and enter the workforce.

“Homelessness is a challenge that has been in every city and every town across the county and the cost of living continues to rise,” Heath said. “Now is the time to take action.”

Director of Housing and Community Development Ron Stickler says that more than 50% of city employees have touched this project.

“Thinking about where you are going to have a place to sleep at night,” Strickler said. “That is what this is going to provide for 23 individuals. It is going to allow them to get out of this fight or flight mode, and really focus on what they need to accumulate back into society and permanent support of housing.”

Former Salisbury Mayor and Secretary of Housing and Community Development Jake Day says the Governor has tasked him with leading Maryland’s inter agency council on homelessness – a 13 state initiative that’s fighting to end homelessness in America.

“Salisbury is leading,” Day said. “You are shaping what the future looks like.”

“We are going to be a state that treats our homeless citizens the same way that Salisbury does: that they deserve dignity and they deserve shelter and not one of them will be left behind,” Day said.

“This isn’t about what we must do according to the letter of the law,” Day said “This is about what we must do because it is the right thing to do”