PENSACOLA, Fla. (WKRG) — It’s a place for second chances: a new 12-bedroom transitional housing facility in Pensacola. 

“We believe in a hand up not hand out,” Men’s Homeless Program Re-Entry Alliance Pensacola Director Kevin Eason said. “So if we can give you a hand up to get back on your feet to do the right thing, hopefully, that will rub off on them to help someone else. So that’s where the chain begins.” 

The Al & Mary Lee Stubblefield Residential Center, a Re-Entry Alliance Pensacola facility, will house people experiencing homelessness and those who were previously incarcerated. 

The facility holds 12 single bedrooms each with its own bathroom and common spaces including living rooms and a kitchen.

As they help with things like job placement and medical screenings, Re-Entry Alliance Pensacola believes giving people a place to lay their head at night is key to helping them get back on their feet.

“Give them a place to sleep, help them get employment and the resources that they need; they have 50% of the battle won,” Eason said.

With the new center and their Max-Well Respite Center that is also housing people, the organization hopes to put a dent in the homelessness issue experienced nationwide.  

“Let there be no doubt the the crisis situation that our whole nation is experiencing continues to grow,” Re-Entry Alliance Pensacola Executive Director Vince Whibbs Jr. said. “The only way you can address that is to find a place for one person at a time. One room, one person at a time.”

Rent at the facility ranges from $450 to $750 per month. Residents will begin moving in next week.