Family Rescue Project

Sunday Breakfast Mission – Family Rescue Project

Sunday Breakfast Rescue Mission (SBRM), now operating as Philly House, is the largest emergency shelter in Philadelphia and has been providing services to homeless Philadelphians for more than 140 years. Located on N. 13th Street in Center City, the Mission serves as a lifeline for the city’s most vulnerable individuals, providing three meals a day, overnight shelter, transitional and congregate living spaces, and apartments for residents with special needs. The Mission’s programs are informed by a comprehensive plan developed with the surrounding community and are delivered through a network of community partners, supportive service providers, and healthcare organizations. These partnerships holistically address the causes and effects of homelessness, from healthcare and job training to counseling and case management.

The Family Rescue Project represents a major renovation of SBRM’s primary facility in Center City. Planned improvements are designed to create high-quality, dignified resources for homeless individuals without sacrificing needed repairs or cutting corners. Renovations will upgrade the ground floor program and service space to include a 1,028-square-foot community room, a library, laundry facilities, public lockers, and new offices for homeless services and casework. Connected to the renovated program space will be an expanded dining facility that will add 190 seats and double the number of meals served each day—an increase from 123,853 meals served in 2022 to a projected 200,000 meals annually once the expansion is complete. This renovation will also reconfigure underutilized space such as offices and multipurpose areas, reclaim public space at the entry, and redesign the shelter and transitional living areas to provide greater privacy, dignity, and space for emerging housing models such as respite care or transitional housing for returning citizens.

By leveraging its central location, the Mission’s renovation will ensure that individuals experiencing homelessness can continue to access critical services near transportation, employment opportunities, and the city’s major resources. The Center City location remains essential to Philly House’s mission, with nearly 30 percent of all homeless men in Philadelphia utilizing the Mission’s shelter and supportive services. With the homelessness crisis worsening in Philadelphia, the renovation of SBRM’s facilities represents a critical investment in the city’s capacity to respond to the needs of unsheltered individuals with the highest levels of vulnerability.

Stone Sherick Consulting Group (SSCG), in collaboration with the Community Design Collaborative (CDC), is completing a comprehensive feasibility study to support the Family Rescue Project. SSCG and CDC are soliciting stakeholder input from residents, staff, funders, and neighbors; managing space planning with Mdesigns and MWJ Consulting; and preparing a capital needs assessment with costs, timelines, and a phased scope of work to ensure no gap in services during construction. SSCG is also preparing a finance plan recommending appropriate public and private funding sources to raise all funds necessary to complete the project. This planning process is shaping the renovations and expansion, ensuring that Philly House can continue to meet and exceed its program goals for decades to come.