(Radio Iowa) – Sioux City’s warming shelter that was scheduled to close at the end of the month due to a lack of funding, will now stay open with support of local agencies and the city council. Shelter board member and treasurer, Joe Twidwell says more local support has developed. “Rumor of the city’s possible support for this year has caused many individual donors and businesses to come forward and say, ‘We need to be part of this. We recognize that this is something we need to do,'” Twidwell says.

The city council had approved a 50-thousand dollar grant for the shelter in July and Monday approved an additional 150-thousand dollars. Mayor Bob Scott says he did not like the way the city was made out to be the villain in the shelter closing. “Quite frankly, we’ve got it before us, because it is a crisis, and trashing people, police chiefs and mayors and council members when we don’t even have all the facts, that’s not fair. It’s not fair at all,” he says. The Mayor reminded Twidwell the city gave the shelter 50-thousand dollars.

“I’m going to plug my nose today and vote for this, because I think it’s important that we have a plan going forward, and we’re in a crisis, so sometimes you have to vote for things that you wish you had a longer time to put a plan together,” Scott says.

The city council approved giving the homeless shelter 150-thousand dollars next February on a 4-1 vote.