Irving's Home for Homeless Young Men Moving, Plans to Expand for Women

IRVING -- The city's only home for homeless youth is relocating in what has been described as an "amicable and mutual decision" with the city to re-purpose the current site. La Buena Vida Youth Leadership Foundation's home for young men, located in the 200 block of Alpine Court, will move to an undisclosed north central Irving location Monday, as part of a plan to switch to a privatized business model."The home is not closing, it’s relocating, " said Chris Allen, La Buena Vida's founder. "The program is expanding."The move comes slightly more than a year after La Buena Vida built and moved into the Alpine Court home.Joy Goodrum, executive director of La Buena Vida, said the foundation did not want to disclose the address of the new home yet because they were in still finalizing paperwork on the property, and she did not want to put the eight young men who live in the home at risk with those who may disagree with the move.Channon Thompson, an 18-year-old who lives in the Alpine home, said he first heard news of the move from a co-worker. A woman asked him if the house was closing and whether the young men living there were forced to clean the floors with a toothbrush, like someone had stated in a since-deleted comment on a Facebook group.“It’s pisses me off because La Buena Vida is a really good place,” Thompson said. “We all know this place is great, so why would you say that?”Thompson said he isn't too thrilled about the move because he has gotten to know the area around Alpine Court and has made friends with the neighbors in the six months that he’s lived there.“I don’t want to move because I’m attached to this place,” he said. “I really like it here. We even have a garden here.”Thompson said he plans to stay in the program until he has enough money for an apartment where he and his three sisters can live.  Continue reading...