Living rent-free with access to work training, men and women at the center would deposit income in savings. When they left they would be financially prepared to meet typical apartment down payments of the first and last months' rent and deposit.

"This facility is going to buy that homeless person the time they need to save, to get into work training and look for a job," Crane said.

Crane said the land, construction and outfitting the new building would cost $6.2 million. He is seeking another $5 million for an endowment to cover operations. The new center would operate around the clock instead of 12 hours a day.

So far, more than $5 million has been raised, mostly through private contributions. Some money has come from the Pamela Atkinson Homeless Trust Fund. Orem has provided money from its federal community development block grant funds. Crane hopes the Provo City Council will dedicate some of its annual budget toward a work training program.

Other donors include Internet publishing company owner Don Oldham, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Fraser Bullock, former chief financial officer for Salt Lake Organizing Committee of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games

The Food and Care soup kitchen provides around 300 meals a day — more than 100,000 meals annually.

Those who enter are served, but Crane is quick to qualify meals are not just a handout.

"We have a contract with Provo city and the Downtown Business Alliance of Provo," Crane said. "Our homeless clients hang and water the flower baskets you see. They power-wash sidewalks and change the decorative banners."

Crane said he approached Provo Mayor Lewis Billings about selling the coalition's three downtown buildings on the corner of 100 North and 300 West.

The timing was fortuitous. Billings and the City Council hope to build a conference center on the north end of that block as part of their downtown revitalization plans. Moving the coalition also should reduce panhandling and petty crime in the downtown area, Crane said.

The city is paying $1.25 million for the buildings — the headquarters, the former Sherwin-Williams paint store and the old Credit Bureau building. Money from the sale is earmarked for construction of the new Food and Care center.

Downtown Provo has attracted homeless people because key federal, state and county offices are located in the county seat. Staying nearby makes it easy for them to pick up food stamps or disability checks. Provo also is home to the vast majority of the county's rental housing and the most frequent bus service.

Moving out of downtown is Crane's choice because he wanted a large plot where he could create a buffer around the center to minimize impact on surrounding businesses and provide the opportunity for expansion.

Bus service or a shuttle could bring clients downtown. A bus stop is two blocks away, and Crane is talking with the Utah Transit Authority about adding a stop directly in front of the facility.

To contribute to the FACC go to www.foodandcare.org.

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E-mail: knelson@desnews.com, twalch@desnews.com