Iowa City nonprofit to open reentry house to help formerly incarcerated men

IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – Inside Out Reentry Community is finishing up remodeling work on it’s first reentry house, after a successful capital campaign to help purchase the house at 719 Page St. in Iowa City. The nonprofit, based in Iowa City, works with individuals incarcerated throughout the state to help them develop reentry plans.

The sober, transitional residence will house six low-income men for up to two years after their return to the community following incarceration. Inside Out will provide on-site case management, mentors, and other supportive services for the residents, who will pay less than market value rent as they get established in the community. The nonprofit raised a total of $293,000 for the reentry house purchase.

The Prison Policy Initiative says formerly incarcerated people are almost 10 times more likely to be homeless than the general public.

“Not only will it be an accomplishment, it will be a sense of hope for the future and a sense of really offering people a leg up, and community. You know, so much of what we do is based on the idea that we’re all one community,” said Dorothy Whiston, who chaired the capital campaign.

“A big thank you goes out to the people of Johnson County for their outstanding support of our housing initiative and our capital campaign,” says Inside Out Executive Director Michelle Heinz. “We’re already getting inquiries from prison staff and people nearing their release date, so we know there’s a great need for this service.”

Inside Out Reentry Community is hoping this is just the first of several housing options they will be able to offer in the future. “Hopefully, long term, we will for one thing, have a women’s house and we may have, you know, something like a four-plex or where people have their own apartments rather than rooms in a house,” said Whiston.

Inside Out plans to open the reentry house sometime in the late summer or early fall once minor remodeling is complete.

If you would like to volunteer with or donate to Inside Out Reentry Community, you can find more information here.

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