Portland Man's Idea To House The Homeless Includes Cruise Ship

The founding director of the non profit Memory Works, Kenneth A. Capron has come up with an idea for housing the homeless which he is calling "Hope Harbor".

An article in the Press Herald says he wants to convert a cruise ship into a floating shelter. In fact, he has invited potential stakeholders to City Hall for a meeting to talk about his idea of not only a shelter for the homeless, but also provide affordable housing and immigrant housing. He adds the used cruise ship could also have space for social service providers.

First step for Capron is applying for a grant to conduct a feasibility study from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which is the nation's largest philanthropy dedicated to health causes.

He said the ship would probably be permanently docked on Portland's waterfront however the city has not responded to his proposal yet.