Mayor inks OK for Lynn shelters

LYNN – Mayor Edward J. Clancy Jr. has signed the final draft versions of two leases that will extend the presence of My Brother’s Table soup kitchen and the city’s emergency homeless shelter for another five years on Willow Street.Clancy said Monday the documents, with several new restrictions included, were signed and had been returned to their respective organizations – My Brother’s Table and the Lynn Shelter Association (LSA).LSA Executive Director Marjorie St. Paul said the association’s Board of Directors is reviewing the final draft and will vote on it at their April 21 meeting.The soup kitchen and the shelter share space in the same city-owned building but are operated independently.Clancy last year imposed several restrictions on the shelter administration, including record checks on clients to ensure none are sex offenders or subject of court warrants. The mayor also advocated that the soup kitchen employ a door monitor who would ensure the meals are served without incident during the specified times.”I’ve signed both leases and everything in them has my approval,” Clancy said. “So on my end, it’s all done.”Clancy said the background checks are not meant to intimidate and are certainly not targeted at immigrants. “We need to know who we are dealing with, especially at the shelter where people stay overnight and it becomes more intensive. Sometimes they become more problematic and need more supervision,” he said. “There have been lots of problems in the downtown, some of it violent. This is anti-social behavior involving serial inebriates or others who have not been able to control their demons.”The mayor said clients at the facilities must be clean and sober in order to receive services.”A lot of work went into these agreements from attorney George Markopolous, Marjorie St. Paul and others. I think it’s a major step toward harmonizing the best interests of the downtown with those unfortunates who require assistance. This is more balanced. We had to control what was going on in that building. The police didn’t even have access,” he said.Clancy said three reasons require that the situation be brought under control – the Blue Line rapid-transit rail once extended to Lynn would bring pedestrians into the area; new residents have purchased condominiums in the neighborhood; and two restaurants are about to open in the downtown business district – the Blue Ox on Oxford Street and Turbine on Central Street where the Gulu Gulu Cafe was formerly located.Referring to those who run the soup kitchen and shelter, Clancy said, “They do God’s work. However, it has to be done in a socially responsible manner and in a way that ensures they don’t become a bad neighbor.”St. Paul declined to elaborate on the shelter lease pending review by the organization’s board members. Ilia Stacy, director of My Brother’s Table, was unavailable for comment.