WORCESTER, Mass. — The Worcester Housing Authority (WHA) is planning to open micro-unit housing for the city’s homeless next May. 

The property, which will be located at 38 Lewis Street, is going to be managed by the Worcester Housing Authority. 

“This is not just about giving the folks a roof over their head and saying, ‘here you go, here are the keys and see you later,’” said Alex Corrales, executive director of the WHA. “We recognize that with the chronic homeless population, a number of them are going to need services and we are going to connect them with those services.”

The facility will comprise 25 units, with one set aside for a full-time building manager.

The WHA will manage the property, and the South Middlesex Opportunity Center will provide social services such as group meetings and activities.

Corrales said the WHA decided on micro-units because single-room models deployed by other agencies have not been particularly effective. Some residents are uncomfortable using shared facilities such as kitchens and bathrooms.

“We wanted to try something completely different and to say ‘hey, let’s take these micro-units, so they’re 250 to 300 square feet, and let’s give folks their own private bathroom, their own private kitchen, so they are not sharing this,’” said Corrales. “When you consider dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and not having to share facilities and not having to share kitchens, it actually even made more sense to us.”

The WHA also decided to focus on micro-units because they are cheaper than building the facilities from scratch. Corrales said the state, the City of Worcester and the Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance are the major funders of the project. 

When the facility is complete, it will look just like a regular house. The units will be trucked in and put together by the construction company with the architectural designs already in place.

“These are almost like boxes that are built at a factory, brought in and, almost like a Lego set, they are kind of built on site,” said Corrales. “They are put together and they end up with this beautiful building.”

Corrales said that if everything goes according to plan, the units will be put together in March, and the facility will open in May.