photo by: Lauren Fox

Baymont Inn and Suites, 740 Iowa St., is pictured Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020.

A Lawrence hotel will serve as a shelter for individuals who need to quarantine or isolate after a positive COVID-19 test or exposure to a positive case, a press release from Douglas County and its Unified Command partners said.

The Kansas Division of Emergency Management is providing funding for shelter services at the Baymont Inn and Suites, 740 Iowa St. The resource will be available to homeless individuals, those who cannot safely isolate or quarantine at home due to numerous people living in the same home and first responders and those who work in high-risk professions who don’t want to potentially expose others in their family.

The shelter service is free and will include three meals a day. It will not, however, include transportation to the hotel, case management services or toiletries. Individuals staying in the hotel must be able to care for themselves, the release stated. The service will not be available to college students residing in dorms or incarcerated individuals.

To access the service, which began on Tuesday, people should reach out to one of the following three individuals:

• Lori Strecker, of LMH Health, at Lori.Strecker@lmh.org or 785-505-2525

• Renee Kuhl, of Lawrence Community Shelter, at reneek@lawrenceshelter.org or 913-636-3074

• Jill Jolicoeur, of Douglas County, at jjolicoeur@douglascountyks.org or 785-393-6435