After being closed for six weeks, The Crib youth shelter at 835 West Addison will resume overnight operations next Wednesday according to the Night Ministry, its parent organization.
The Night Ministry voluntarily halted nightly operations on June 7, citing staff turnover, training, and other issues.
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| The Crib | The Night Ministry |
“Over the past seven weeks, we have reviewed and revised our policies and procedures and hired and trained new staff,” Night Ministry Senior Vice President Erin Ryan told The Windy City Times.
The shelter’s operating procedures have raised concern in the past.
Major issues have included The Crib’s practice of allowing convicted violent felons to stay in the shelter with younger, marginalized, and easily-influenced youths.
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| The Crib | The Night Ministry |
In February, a 23-year-old man who was on parole for robbery was arrested at the Crib after staff members reported seeing him carrying a gun inside the shelter.
Last October, CWBChicago reported that a different man who was on parole for robbery called 911 to report that he had been robbed inside the Crib.
That man, Keyruni Buford, was arrested in Boystown three weeks later after he punched a senior citizen in the face three times, took the victim’s phone and reached into the man’s pants to take his wallet, according to court records.
As before, the shelter will operate in the basement of Lakeview Lutheran Church beginning July 26.
In announcing The Crib’s closure, Ryan said, “We have had a couple incidents in the space—it’s a small space and tensions were high…We had a couple incidents that made us concerned for the safety of the residents. We want to make sure the space is safe and that we review our policies and the way that we use it.”
Unclear with today’s announcement is what changes have been made to make the small space better suited for the shelter’s safe operation.
