St. Lucie County seeks operator for co-ed homeless veterans shelter in old

St. Lucie County plans to convert an old motel into a co-ed homeless veterans shelter, and find a nonprofit to operate it.

The county will spend an estimated $515,000 to $687,000 renovating the Relax Inn, which was built in 1954, into 13 single-occupancy rooms and a communal space for dining, meetings and group sessions, spokesperson Erick Gill said.

St. Lucie County bought the Relax Inn motel at 3455 North U.S. 1 in June 2024 and plans to convert it into a 13-bed co-ed homeless veterans shelter. This is how it looked on Dec. 10, 2024.

The county paid $1.15 million for the 2.39-acre property at 3455 North U.S. 1, north of Taylor Creek Commons in Fort Pierce, buying it from GP Hospitality in June. The state ponied up $875,000.

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Water and well installation is underway, but Gill did not know when renovations to the 4,349-square-foot building will begin or when the shelter will open. An architectural review is complete, but the county is awaiting the proposed design work, Gill said. Renovations are expected to take about 18 months, he said.

“The goal for this shelter is to provide … services, including transportation, job training and mental health services” and assistance finding permanent housing, Gill said.

Jan. 8 is the deadline to submit proposals to run the shelter. A selection committee will choose the best fit.

Rachelle Barrett is TCPalm’s general assignment reporter. Contact her at rachelle.barrett@tcpalm.com.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: St. Lucie converting Relax Inn into co-ed homeless veterans shelter

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