Salina Grace asks city to maintain $90,000 operating grant for 2026

Salina Grace asked the Salina City Commission on June 9 to hold its outside-agency operating grant steady for 2026 so the nonprofit can continue shelter and resource-center services in the downtown area.

The request matters because Salina Grace recently moved into an 18,000-square-foot facility at 315 South Broadway and said city funding supports daily shelter operations and partner services that reduce incidents that trigger emergency responses. “This past year your support has helped us shelter 92 men, 35 women and 4 kids during the wintertime,” Chad Young, executive director of Salina Grace, told the commission as he outlined the group’s use of city support. Young said Salina Grace served about 16,000 meals last year and averages 50 to 60 people per day in its community resource center.

The nonprofit provides a low-barrier winter shelter with no sobriety or income requirements and operates a multi-agency resource center where eight partner agencies provide mental health, addiction, housing and other services on-site, Young said. “We want to make sure that anyone who is on the streets of Salina has a safe, warm place to sleep,” he said, adding that meals and shelter “are a gateway that helps us to build the trust and opens the door to the longer term change.”

Young said Salina Grace’s overall operating budget is larger — he referenced a $570,000 number during his remarks — and that the organization’s request to the city is to keep its annual city allocation at last year’s level of $90,000 to support shelter operations. He said Salina Grace currently draws roughly 25% of its funding from government entities (with the city identified as the primary government contributor), about 25% from foundations and about 50% from individual donors and community fundraising. Young invited commissioners to visit the new facility at an open house June 17 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and said the shelter will soon open showers and laundry services for guests.

Commission discussion acknowledged both fiscal restraint and the program’s apparent community impact: one commissioner said the service is “something the city would fail doing very fast” without the nonprofit’s volunteers and work. No formal action on the city’s budget allocation was taken during the presentation; the agency’s request will be considered as part of the city’s outside-agency budget process.

Clarifying details: Young gave the counts of people sheltered (92 men, 35 women, 4 children) and meals served (about 16,000 last year). He described the organization’s new 18,000-square-foot building at 315 South Broadway and said showers and laundry services will open in the coming weeks. He described Salina Grace’s funding mix as ~25% government, ~25% foundations and ~50% public donations.

Next steps: Salina Grace’s request will be considered in the city’s outside-agency budget process for 2026; the organization’s June 17 open house is scheduled for commissioners and the public to inspect the new facility.