The Lot Project Sees Transitional Housing and Key to Reducing Homelessness
Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer
The Lot Project is working to help people find a path to permanent, affordable housing.
Transitional housing at The Lot Project’s three “Village Homes” aims to offer a short bridge between the streets or emergency shelters and a stable apartment lease, not a permanent destination.
In Anderson, where many experiencing homelessness sleep outside on any given night, organizers say the model is less about providing a bed and more about surrounding that bed with structure, accountability and a sense of community.
The Lot Project has begun welcoming residents who have already taken their first steps out of crisis—graduating from addiction recovery programs, completing mental health treatment, or exhausting their stays at local shelters. Residents pay rent and sign a program agreement, then move into modest units for six to twelve months while meeting regularly with case managers.
Executive Director Nate Knox describes the arrangement as “supportive housing,” where a traditional lease is paired with required coaching in financial literacy, relationships and life skills. The goal, he said, is that by the time residents leave, they not only can maintain their own apartments, but are positioned to contribute to the neighborhoods they move into.
The Lot Project is explicit that the units are not emergency shelters, but a second step for people who have already done the hard work of getting sober, stabilizing their mental health or moving through homelessness programs. Ideal candidates, staff say, are those leaving recovery centers or shelters who are “willing and able” to comply with curfews, case-management meetings and a structured plan toward independence.
Case managers work with each resident to set three to five concrete goals—such as securing steady employment, paying down debt, or repairing strained family relationships—and track progress over the course of the stay. The organization also connects residents with its broader network, including weekly meals, clothing closets, a community garden and an arts space that Lot Project leaders say can be therapeutic after years of instability.
Local and regional studies have repeatedly pointed to transitional housing—short-term, service-rich units that sit between shelters and the private market—as one of Anderson County’s greatest needs. A recent allocation plan for federal housing funds, along with a community “white paper” on homelessness, cited a shortage of small, affordable units tied to case management and warned that emergency shelters alone would not help people exit homelessness for good.
Anderson also has one of the highest percentages of unsheltered homelessness in the Upstate, with roughly three-quarters of its homeless residents living outside rather than in shelters, a rate far higher than some neighboring counties due to the dearth of emergency shelter beds. Leaders at The Lot Project say that reality pushed their board to invest in on-site housing, placing the new units within walking distance of meals, gardens and job opportunities instead of on the outskirts of town.
Knox, who took over as executive director after several years on staff, has become one of the public faces of a broader community push to redesign Anderson’s response to homelessness. As task forces discuss a larger regional shelter system, Lot Project leaders say they hope their compact experiment in transitional housing can serve as proof that tightly knit, service-linked homes can help prevent people from returning to the streets.
