NORTH TONAWANDA, N.Y. — The YWCA of the Niagara Frontier is celebrating the opening of its newest housing development, aimed at helping homeless women and domestic abuse survivors.
The building is located at 49 Tremont St. in North Tonawanda.
The 12 studio apartments will serve women without children. There will also be a coffee shop at the front, where the women can learn job skills.
The 100-year-old building originally housed the YWCA of the Tonawandas but became vacant after its merger with the YWCA of Niagara.
"We looked around to see what would be the best use for this building, and housing, as everyone knows, is so tough," said Kathleen Granchelli, CEO of the YWCA of the Niagara Frontier. "So we've been doing housing for domestic violence and homeless women for, gosh, 20-some years, so it was natural to move into that type of housing for this space too."
Construction took about two years to complete.
Women staying at the apartments will also benefit from programs aimed at helping them gain stability and economic self-sufficiency.