Richmond’s unhoused staying at the Courtyard by Marriott face uncertainty
On a quiet afternoon in October, Raul Diaz tucks his hands into the pockets of his loose denim jeans and walks through the parking lot of Courtyard by Marriott on Garrity Way.
His cloth mask, worn to protect him from contracting COVID-19, matches the plaid print and the brown shades of his button-down shirt. With his back slouched, he walks towards the hotel entrance. He pulls his mask up to cover his nose and mouth. There are a handful of people from a nonprofit organization called the Greater Richmond Interfaith Program (GRIP) unloading boxes of barbecue and seafood onto a hotel trolley.
Diaz disappears through the doors of the Marriott where he is staying. He used to live on the streets of Richmond. When the state declared shelter-in-place back in March, a county nurse who would often check on him suggested that he be moved to the hotel.
This hotel has been his home since June this year.
This story was originally published on November 9, 2020, as a part of a hyperlocal news site, Richmond Confidential , produced by UC Berkeley.
