"We look at it as an opportunity to take a property that is distressed, and has been abandoned for a decade now, and to be able to put up brand new housing,” said John Yazwinski, president and CEO of Father Bill's and MainSpring, about plans to build supportive housing for the homeless at the former Catholic Charities site on North Main Street.

BROCKTON – Just after Brockton workers cleared out the longstanding homeless encampment known as Tent City, a local nonprofit met with neighborhood residents to talk about new plans for supportive housing on North Main Street, as part of an effort to get people off the streets permanently.

The meeting was held on Tueday night at Jack’s Place, constructed at 695 N. Main St., which is opening this summer with 20 units of supportive housing for formerly homeless veterans and disabled individuals.

Just across the street is the former Catholic Charities building, once used as a hospital, which will also be turned into supportive housing for the homeless, said John Yazwinski, president and CEO of Father Bill’s and MainSpring, which operates the downtown emergency shelter. Father Bill’s and MainSpring will knock down the Catholic Charities building to make way for a 23-unit project that is now in the local planning and zoning phase, with state funding to be sought this fall, Yazwinski said. But the new building, which will also have a preference for veterans and the disabled, will not be constructed for a few years, Yazwinski said.

“We look at it as an opportunity to take a property that is distressed, and has been abandoned for a decade now, and to be able to put up brand new housing,” Yazwinski said.

The head of the local nonprofit said that the decision by the city to clear out the Tent City homeless camp on Monday will not reduce the homelessness problem, but that such supportive housing will.

“We can really reduce the street population by providing a quick route to housing,” Yazwinski said. “Once someone gets the housing, we can start to work on the issues the have caused homelessness. ... Without a real commitment to supportive housing, we're going to continue to see people live outside.”

The Tuesday meeting was organized by Ward 7 City Councilor Shirley Asack and Ward 6 City Councilor Jack Lally.

Asack and Lally said that some neighborhood residents and nearby businesses were concerned that the opening of Jack’s Place this summer would result in homeless people loitering out front and other problems.

“We were assured by Father Bill's that they would stay on top of all this stuff,” Asack said. “It's something they won't allow to happen is what I understood.”

Yazwinski said that Jack’s Place will have a staff that works there with the tenants, and that unlike the downtown shelter, it is permanent housing where residents can stay inside during the daytime. He said it will be much like Jeff’s Place, which has been open since 2010 in downtown Brockton, a 32-unit residential building where fire and police issues have been minimal.

Yazwinski said the proposed housing at the Catholic Charities site, currently known as project name “Montello Welcome Home II,” will look similar to Jack’s Place. He released a rendering of the proposal drawn up by the Boston-based Elton + Hampton Architects, showing a similarly flat roof and three floors of studio apartments.

Lally, the Ward 6 Councilor, said that Jack’s Place looks like it should be a nice addition to the neighborhood.

“I’m optimistic that it will be a positive impact,” Lally said. “The building looks modern, nice, neat and clean. The building alone I feel will help the area. It used to be just an old lot collecting trash. It looks nice for the neighborhood.”