About 500 evacuees remain sheltered at the Austin Convention Center, down from a peak of more than 4,000.
Mayor Will Wynn said he expects the last guests to be in more permanent housing by Friday night, just in time for a large, 10,000-person convention to begin Monday.
Some of the remaining evacuees are ready to move on, but say they are worried about losing the safety net and resources found at the shelter.
Wynn said all of that will still be available at a to-be announced location of an ongoing operations center run by FEMA, in coordination with the Red Cross. He said the location will be determined by Friday.
It will offer services for both people who intend to move back to the Gulf Coast and those who wish to stay permanently in Austin.
FEMA is also still issuing $2,000 checks to evacuees.
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Closing shelter
The Austin Convention Center shelter is expected to close by Friday.
 
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Louisiana evacuee Autherine Algere, a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, said the agency denied her the check because an ex-boyfriend filed head-of-household using her address.
"How can he file head of my household, when I was living at HANO, Housing Authority of New Orleans? It's easy to verify," Algere said.
It’s those types of situations that require the time and effort of FEMA counselors. FEMA said verifying evacuees’ eligibility takes time.
"I really can't say how long that will be. But all I can tell you is that our FEMA representatives are working as fast as they can to resolve cases like hers," Pam Percival said.
While Algere has been staying at the evacuee shelter, she said she's received excellent mental health services.
Federal and city officials say evacuees who leave the convention center will not be left without help.
In fact, a group called the Southwest Housing Compliance Corporation approved $450,000 to the Red Cross to help evacuees find housing. They said 300 families living in the convention center applied for the money.
The housing corporation hopes the money will support these families until FEMA can pick up the tab.
"People want to move on and get on with their lives, and once you move into a house, it feels like you're starting your life over again," housing advocate Carl Ritchie said.
Money from the housing corporation should cover rent for two months. After that, FEMA should have a plan that would extend that program by another 18 months.
Many families were already living in low-income housing in New Orleans.
