With homelessness on the rise, a unique program is starting in the Valley to help people improve their lives.

Organizers will take a different approach to help people deal with homelessness, drug use, and other issues.

The Harrisonburg City Council approved several procedural measures related to zoning Tuesday night to allow a home on North Main Street to become a new site for helping those in need.

One thing that's unique about the project is the focus on sustainable living. Organizers will start green-energy projects and get involved in small businesses based at the house.

People like Jason Lyle Smith are having a tough time finding a home.

Smith says the big challenge is "basically money, not having enough of it ever."

He says he's trying to get work, but he's still passionate about one thing.

"I would like to continue to do artwork, maybe some mural work," says Smith.

Tom Benevento, coordinator of sustainable initiatives for New Community Project, is one of the organizers of the new program on North Main Street.

The house is a joint venture with his organization, the Harrisonburg Redevelopment and Housing Authority, and Our Community Place.

HRHA will own the house while NCP and OCP run the program.

"In terms of the economic situation we're in, there's a greater number of people that are having a hard time making ends meet. And so, this is a response to that," says Benevento.

Once the place is cleaned up, ten people at most will live at the house at any given time.

They'll work with a mentor and live at the house for at least six months.

Benevento says he hopes the residents will "really kind of get into being here as a home. It's not a shelter. It's really a supportive home."

Residents will have a routine schedule and have 24-hour supervision by a staff person living at the house.

"We're not trying to do big things. We're trying to do the small things but with some kind of integrity and dignity for people," says Benevento.

It's something Jason Lyle Smith says could help fight stereotypes of people like him.

"I think that that would be great in this community to show that homeless people are not all just drug addicts and drunks," says Smith.

Organizers say they want to get people from the general community to come to the house too. They'll host workshops and other events related to sustainable living. They hope to have the house open by early fall.