The Hays-Caldwell Women’s Center (HCWC), which is currently in the permitting process for construction of a new transitional housing facility for victims of violence and abuse, has received support from Hays County.
On Tuesday morning, the Hays County Commissioners Court voted to approve a funding agreement with the HCWC, which will provide the center with $600,000 for a new transitional housing facility. Construction on the project, which has an estimated total cost of $4.3 million, is expected to begin this fall. County Judge Ruben Becerra was not present at the Tuesday meeting due to a family emergency.
According to Marla Johnson, executive director of the Hays-Caldwell Women’s Center, last year 2,111 victims were served by the HCWC, 1,576 of which were from Hays County. The HCWC is a nonprofit that provides services, including counseling, advocacy, 24-hour crisis response and shelter, to Hays and Caldwell county residents who are victims of family violence, dating violence, sexual assault and child abuse. In 2009, the HCWC opened the McCoy Family Shelter, a 10,000 square-foot facility that cost $2.1 million, according to the organization’s website.
