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Fayetteville, Cumberland County

Cumberland County: Commissioners expand Unhoused Support Center site search

The county's Oct. 21 wrap-up of the Oct. 19 meeting records a 5-1 vote on a five-part staff motion. CBS 17 independently reported that tally Monday night and named Commissioner Glenn Adams as the no vote.

ConfirmedThe main facts are confirmed by official or first-hand sources.

By Triangle Local Newsroom · Published

The Market House on Hay Street in downtown Fayetteville

File photo: Epicjeff (CC BY-SA 3.0), via Wikimedia Commons.

What we know

Confirmed

  • The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners held a regular meeting Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, at 6:45 p.m. in Room 118 of the Judge E. Maurice Braswell Cumberland County Courthouse in Fayetteville.Confirmed by Cumberland County commissioners Oct. 19 regular meeting wrap-up, posted Oct. 21, 2026
  • Assistant County Manager Heather Skeens presented an update on the Unhoused Support Center. The wrap-up said the project has reached the end of the design-development phase.Confirmed by Cumberland County Oct. 19 meeting wrap-up, Oct. 21, 2026
  • The Hawley Lane site, where a groundbreaking was held in 2024, remains a considered location, the wrap-up said. It added that possible delays could raise project costs and affect the schedule.Confirmed by Cumberland County Oct. 19 meeting wrap-up, Oct. 21, 2026
  • Staff also reviewed workforce-development work tied to the project, land-acquisition due diligence, and results of earlier requests for proposals for shelter providers.Confirmed by Cumberland County Oct. 19 meeting wrap-up, Oct. 21, 2026
  • The board voted 5-1 to approve a five-part motion directing staff to identify up to five alternative sites; develop an alternative construction plan using the board-approved design to be issued as a request for information; prepare a request for proposals that includes temporary emergency-shelter capacity for up to two years while the permanent facility is built; continue Hawley Lane coordination, including special-use requirements from the City of Fayetteville and school-board considerations; and identify existing county-owned building options.Confirmed by Cumberland County Oct. 19 meeting wrap-up, Oct. 21, 2026
  • The same motion directed staff to return to the Nov. 12 agenda session with findings. The wrap-up listed that session for 1 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12, in Room 564.Confirmed by Cumberland County Oct. 19 meeting wrap-up, Oct. 21, 2026
  • CBS 17, posting Monday night, independently reported the Oct. 19 vote as 5-1 and wrote that Commissioner Glenn Adams voted against the motion. The wrap-up recorded the 5-1 tally and did not name the no vote.Confirmed by CBS 17 (WNCN), posted Oct. 26, 2026, 8:35 p.m.; comparison with the county wrap-up
  • CBS 17 also wrote that commissioners want an alternative construction plan, a look at county-owned buildings, and a request for proposals for temporary emergency shelter space with at least 30 beds available within the next 90 days. The wrap-up's temporary-shelter line is capacity for up to two years while the permanent building is built. Those clocks are not the same.Confirmed by CBS 17, Oct. 26, 2026; comparison with the county wrap-up
  • The station wrote that the city's special-use permit for the project has expired, that Pauline Jones High School has opened near the Hawley Lane site, and that continued delays have pushed an anticipated completion date to early 2028. The wrap-up mentioned special-use requirements, school-board considerations, and possible schedule effects. It did not use those three station details.Confirmed by CBS 17, Oct. 26, 2026; comparison with the county wrap-up
  • CBS 17 quoted Board Chair Kirk deViere saying the issue boils down to emergency-shelter-bed capacity.Confirmed by CBS 17, Oct. 26, 2026
  • The same CBS 17 account said the county estimates about 60 emergency shelter beds through the Salvation Army and that hundreds of people in the county remain unhoused. The wrap-up did not print those figures.Confirmed by CBS 17, Oct. 26, 2026
  • CBS 17 quoted Bishop Bennie Bryant of Cornerstone Christian Empowerment Center in Spring Lake. That account said the church now runs white-flag shelter in bad weather, that county funding was cut in half this year, and that Bryant wants a former elementary school converted to housing. The wrap-up did not mention Bryant or the church.Confirmed by CBS 17, Oct. 26, 2026

Still unknown

  • Which sites, if any, staff will name on Nov. 12
  • Whether Hawley Lane remains the build site
  • A construction start or opening date in the wrap-up
  • Which commissioner cast the no vote in the official write-up
  • Whether CBS 17's 30-bed, 90-day temporary-shelter line matches the wrap-up's up-to-two-years request for proposals
  • A dollar figure or bed count in the Oct. 21 wrap-up

What this means for you

Instructions from Cumberland County Oct. 19 meeting wrap-up, Oct. 21, 2026

This site is not Cumberland County. For the vote and later packets, use the county wrap-up and the Nov. 12 agenda session. Agendas are posted at cumberlandcountync.gov/commissioners. This is not an emergency service. If anyone is in danger, call 911.

What happened

In Fayetteville, Cumberland County commissioners voted 5-1 on Oct. 19 to widen the search for a place to put the Unhoused Support Center, according to the county's Oct. 21 meeting wrap-up.

Assistant County Manager Heather Skeens told the board the design-development phase is finished, that write-up said. Hawley Lane, where officials broke ground in 2024, is still on the list. Delays could cost more and slip the calendar.

The five-part motion tells staff to name as many as five other sites, write a different construction plan from the already approved design and issue that as an RFI, and prepare an RFP that includes temporary emergency beds for as long as two years while a permanent building is built. It also keeps Hawley Lane in play, including special-use work with the City of Fayetteville and the school board, and asks staff to look at buildings the county already owns.

Findings are due at the Nov. 12 agenda session, set for 1 p.m. in Room 564.

CBS 17, writing Monday night, independently put the vote at 5-1 and named Commissioner Glenn Adams as the member who voted no. The wrap-up recorded the same tally and did not name that vote.

The station also wrote that the temporary-shelter request should produce at least 30 beds within 90 days. That clock does not match the wrap-up's two-year temporary-bed line, so this file does not treat 90 days as the official deadline.

CBS 17 added that the city's special-use permit has expired, that Pauline Jones High School now sits near Hawley Lane, and that the expected finish has slid to early 2028. The wrap-up mentioned special-use requirements, school-board considerations, and possible schedule trouble. It did not use those three details.

The same account quoted Board Chair Kirk deViere on emergency-bed capacity and Bishop Bennie Bryant of Cornerstone Christian Empowerment Center in Spring Lake, who wants a former elementary school reused. It put current Salvation Army emergency beds at about 60 and said hundreds of people in the county remain unhoused. None of that appears in the wrap-up.

The Fayetteville Observer published its own Oct. 26 story. That page is paywalled here, so it is not used as a source.

This site is not the county. If anyone is in danger, call 911.

What we don't know yet

Staff have not posted the alternative sites. The wrap-up does not set a construction start, an opening date, a cost, or a bed count.

What happens next

County staff are due back Nov. 12. Use the county's agenda pages, not this file, for that packet.

Photos

Text-only. No county or station photos are used here.

Why it matters

The county still has no settled site for a planned overnight shelter. The Oct. 19 vote keeps Hawley Lane in play while staff look at other land, county buildings, and short-term beds. Neighbors and people without housing need the official motion kept apart from later station details. This page is not an emergency notice.

Updates

  1. Oct 26, 2026, 10:05 PM

    The county's Oct. 21 wrap-up records a 5-1 Oct. 19 vote directing staff to find up to five other sites, keep Hawley Lane in view, look at county-owned buildings, and write a temporary-shelter request for proposals for up to two years. CBS 17 independently reported the 5-1 tally Monday night, named Glenn Adams as the no vote, and added a 30-bed, 90-day temporary-shelter line that the wrap-up does not use.

Sources

  1. Cumberland County Commissioners Oct. 19 Regular Meeting Wrap-Up (county news item by Sade' Wilson, posted Oct. 21, 2026, 3:08 p.m.: regular meeting Oct. 19, 6:45 p.m., Room 118, Judge E. Maurice Braswell Cumberland County Courthouse; Item 5C, Consideration of an Unhoused Support Center; Assistant County Manager Heather Skeens; end of design-development phase; Hawley Lane site, groundbreaking 2024, remains a considered location; possible delays could increase costs and affect the schedule; workforce development, land-acquisition due diligence, prior RFPs for shelter providers; 5-1 vote on a five-part motion to identify up to five alternative sites, develop an alternative construction plan using the board-approved design as an RFI, prepare an RFP that includes temporary emergency-shelter capacity for up to two years while the permanent facility is built, continue Hawley Lane coordination including special-use requirements from the City of Fayetteville and school-board considerations, and identify existing county-owned building options; return to the Nov. 12 agenda session with findings; that session listed for 1 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12, Room 564; next regular meeting Monday, Nov. 2, 9 a.m. Text-only; no county photos used.)

    Official sourcePublished by Cumberland County · Checked Oct 26, 2026, 10:00 PM

  2. Cumberland County searches for new homeless shelter sites (CBS 17 / WNCN, posted Oct. 26, 2026, 8:35 p.m.: 5-1 vote Oct. 19; Commissioner Glenn Adams voted against; identify up to five alternative sites; explore county-owned buildings; alternative construction plan; RFP for temporary emergency shelter space with at least 30 beds available within the next 90 days; Hawley Lane groundbreaking 2024, construction has not moved forward; Pauline Jones High School near the proposed site; coordinate with the Cumberland County Board of Education and City of Fayetteville; special-use permit with the city has expired; Assistant County Manager Heather Skeens, design development complete; anticipated completion early 2028; Board Chair Kirk deViere quote on emergency-shelter-bed capacity; Bishop Bennie Bryant, Cornerstone Christian Empowerment Center in Spring Lake, white-flag shelter, funding cut in half from 50 people to 25, former elementary school conversion; about 60 emergency shelter beds through the Salvation Army; hundreds remain unhoused; staff return Nov. 12. Read via the station's public WordPress JSON because the HTML page returned 403 here. Text-only; no CBS 17 photos used.)

    Published by CBS 17 (WNCN) · Checked Oct 26, 2026, 10:00 PM

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