LEWISTON — The city of Portland moved 20 families seeking asylum in this country from the Portland Expo Center shelter into a Lewiston hotel Wednesday morning, according to Portland officials.

The families had been staying at the shelter since April, according to Jessica Grondin, director of communications and digital services for the city of Portland. They are staying at the Ramada by Wyndham Lewiston Hotel and Conference Center at 490 Pleasant St.

About 190 people from 60 families remained at the Expo on Wednesday morning – down from 300 people at peak capacity this spring. Families headed to Lewiston began loading onto school buses before 9 a.m. and a U-Haul was packed with their belongings after the buses pulled away.

Asylum seekers traveling to a Freeport hotel followed, with the last bus loading the last 24 people around 10:30 a.m.

Kristen Dow, director of health and human services for Portland, said the process went smoothly.

“There has been a lot of ‘thank you’ and a lot of people stopping us and saying thank you to the city for everything we’ve done,” Dow said.

Some families who were waiting to load buses and vans said they were grateful and happy to be getting shelter at the hotels, though they’re also eager to find permanent housing.

“We are happy. We appreciate the government efforts on our behalf,” Doriana Daniel, an asylum seeker from Angola, said.

Daniel said she will be looking for housing while at the hotel in Freeport because she knows it must be expensive. “I want to find a house very quickly,” she said.

Two asylum seekers kick a soccer ball around Wednesday afternoon in front of the Ramada hotel on Pleasant Street in Lewiston. They are part of a group bused there earlier in the day from the Portland Expos shelter. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

Portland closed the Expo shelter Wednesday and city workers were relocating 192 individuals who hadn’t found permanent housing yet into two hotels, the Ramada in Lewiston and a hotel in Freeport that has not been identified.

Portland city staff was on site at the Lewiston hotel Wednesday morning to ensure the families have what they need, Grondin said. The city intends to house the asylum seekers in Lewiston for a couple of months, she said, as more permanent housing is found for them or as rooms open up for them at the Freeport hotel.

Portland was organizing the relocation effort, and in conjunction with the state will be paying for the families to live at the hotels. Portland’s share is expected to be about $500,000 for the two hotels, according to the Portland Press Herald.

Portland has accepted more than 1,600 asylum seekers since the beginning of the year, according to the Portland Press Herald. The city housed as many as 300 at the Portland Expo this past spring. Some have been relocated to permanent housing, but the city struggled to find housing for 192 of them.

Families coming to Lewiston will primarily be those with children under age 5, Grondin said. At this time, it is unclear exactly where school-age children will attend classes, but the city of Portland will give them the choice to attend Portland or Freeport schools, she said.

Lewiston Schools Superintendent Jake Langlais said Wednesday that it appears that about 16 will attend Lewiston schools.

The Ramada is being eyed by Lewiston Housing Authority leaders for possible use as transitional housing. Under the plan, Lewiston Housing would buy the hotel and create 118 studio units with services focusing on workforce development, mental health and more. Lewiston Housing officials said it would be intended for “Lewiston residents who are homeless, priced out of the market, and/or victims of no-fault evictions.”

The City Council has so far been generally positive about the plan, although challenges must still be worked out. If approved, Lewiston Housing officials hope to close the deal on or before Oct. 31.

Asylum seekers can legally remain in the U.S. while pursuing permanent status as asylees, but they are not allowed to work and support themselves for at least six months after applying for asylum.

As of Wednesday morning, Lewiston hadn’t received any more updates for the public on the relocation effort, according to Angelynne Amores, the city’s director of marketing and communication. Lewiston officials received a courtesy call from Portland staff earlier this week about the move. Otherwise, Lewiston has not been involved with the relocation project.

Lewiston Mayor Carl Sheline said in a statement Wednesday morning, “Lewiston is a diverse and welcoming city and we will work hard to make the best of this situation. Lewiston seeks to be part of the solution for our community members who are unhoused and it is challenging to do so when we are not part of the decision making process.”

Portland Press Herald reporter Rachel Ohm contributed to this report.