Salvation Army extends cold weather shelter hours as Central Virginia braces for snow

Dec 5, 2025 - 00:25

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Salvation Army extends cold weather shelter hours as Central Virginia braces for snow

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — As temperatures continue to drop and winter weather makes its way to the region, the Salvation Army Central Virginia has extended its cold weather shelter hours to make sure people have a warm place to stay.

The cold weather shelter on Chamberlayne Avenue runs from November 15 to April 15, and is open daily from 5 p.m. to 8 a.m. the next morning. However, with snow in the forecast, the shelter will not close on Friday, Dec. 5.

Major Samuel Kim, commander of the Salvation Army Central Virginia, said they’ve seen demand rise throughout the week.

"Every night we have a full shelter here, and we send some people to the CARITAS for the surge shelter," Kim said.

The facility has 106 beds and offers separate rooms for both men and women to have a warm place to sleep, hot meals and resources. When the shelter reaches capacity, an overflow shelter operated by CARITAS steps in to help.

Kim said the Salvation Army hopes to increase its services through a $15 million expansion called the Center of Hope. The project would double the number of people it can serve, add family rooms and create space for case management services.

"They [can] get job training, computer skills and any type of case management," he said. "This is a transformational service, not transactional. We really want to see all people who are experiencing homelessness eventually be self-sufficient."

The city of Richmond has pledged $7 million towards the center and the Salvation Army will need to match the remaining funds by the end of 2026.

Kim said the Salvation Army is in need of monetary donations and clothing.

"We need communities to support financially for the capital campaign," he said. "We [also] need brand new clothing, shoes and even underwear they can give out to our shelter guests."

Here's a breakdown of the extended hours for the cold weather shelter: