The Landing plans for the future

(ABC 6 News) – The Landing has been helping homeless people in the Rochester community for three years.

They got their start helping people in a mobile unit, and now, they’re looking to expand even more.

"We’ve seen so many things that have happened with the population that we work with that are such strides in the right direction, that’s what keeps us going," Dan Fifield, co-founder of The Landing said.

Dan’s on a mission to help those experiencing homelessness here in Rochester. He and his wife Holly co-founded the landing three years ago.

Dan was suspended from his job after trying to help a homeless family of five find shelter.

"The pandemic was probably the best thing this organization could have had happened because it put us in the forefront. It put us in a position where we could take a lead on a lot of these things," Fifield said.

One of those leads was the Mobile Outreach Unit, which travels to different parts of the city and offers clothes, toiletries, and other necessities to the population they serve.

"It made us mobile, it made us be able to be down at the day center and the Mayo Civic Center and just allowed us to continue to be out on the streets," Fifield said.

Dan and his team wanted to then do something different, to find a permanent spot for their operation. They moved here to the Silver Lake Fire Station in early November of last year.

Over just the last two months, 369 people utilized services at the Silver Lake Fire Station. That’s around 65 people a day, but with their contract ending in April, Dan says they’re currently under contract to purchase the Whiskey Bones property in northeast Rochester.

Dan says he’s gone back and forth with the City of Rochester to figure out the zoning situation for this new property.

"We’re trying to determine zoning. It appears from our team’s review that the zoning should be adequate with what we want to do," Fifield said.

Dan says there will be 9,000 square feet of space, space for an office, a day room, and three clinic rooms.

And with these changes, it’s the heart that Dan has to make a difference here in our community for the people that need it most.

"There’s always going to be someone who’s homeless, and there’s always going to be that need," Fifield said.

Next month, The Landing will host an event called "A Holiday of Hope Gala" at the Castle in Rochester.