North Point v. 2100

After the first day at North Point I couldn't help but to make comparisons and notice differences.  The first one I noticed was the cleanliness and apparent order and organization of everything.  At 2100 there were a whole bunch of people walking around everywhere and just hanging out in every crevice of the building.  There just seemed to be a lot of people at all times.  At North Point there are rarely more than a couple residents visible at any time outside of meals.  Residents are either working, finding a job, or in their room.  North Point feels more like a hotel than a shelter and has a lot of offices and staff members populating the visible areas.  A second difference is our schedule.  At 2100 we interviewed all day every day but at North Point we interview at lunch until we leave.  In the mornings we do volunteer work, unrelated to our projects. Also, when I ask if the residents feel safe everyone at North Point says they do but few of the men at 2100 say they feel completely safe.  Of course the goals of the buildings are different.  At 2100 the purpose is much broader, from Emergency bedding to transitioning out of the shelter.  North Point is a transitional housing building for moving people back into their own housing.  It is the last step, many times, before heading out of homeless shelters all together.  There are many other smaller differences, but these are the ones that stand out.