Conflict Arises over Gateway to Hope

TYLER — Gateway to Hope is a homeless center in Tyler whose founders say it’s been helping people since last September. But KETK reports some neighbors are not impressed by the center’s good works. And recently, the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission extended the facility’s permit for just a year, not the five years requested by the center.

Gateway to Hope is a labor of love for its overseer, Pat Mallory: a facility designed around not just helping the homeless for a day, but striving to help them for the rest of their lives. Mallory says since September, more than 100 people have found jobs, which is why she says the ruling came as a shock. She continues, “We were totally surprised, we have heard nothing but praise from everyone who’s come in from the city, from the policemen that come here.”

But according to the restaurant across the street and neighbors who live next door, the center has only brought unwanted homeless traffic. They say once the center closes at 4 p.m., many of the homeless people stay around and bother residences and businesses. But Mallory says as long as the doors stay open, the center will continue to apply for the permit every year — and, she says, keep turning Tyler homeless into Tyler taxpayers. “We’re just hoping we can just continue to do what we do, not just for the homeless, but for the city of Tyler,” says Mallory.