Santa Clara County Approves North County Homeless Shelter Services
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SAN JOSE - The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors today approved a plan that would provide up to $1.2 million in funding to make sure the homeless in the North County area have a warm, safe place to go on cold nights this winter. (Motion by Simitian, Approved 5-0) The funds are needed to help the County address a shortage of beds left by the closure of a long-time shelter facility earlier this year.
The North County area lost more than 125 emergency shelter beds in March, when the Sunnyvale Armory closed to make way for an affordable housing development. The Armory had provided 125 to 135 shelter spots every night during the four-month cold weather season for over 20 years.
The County has spent the past several months working with city and nonprofit partners to find a replacement for the Armory, but no suitable facility has been identified. The plan approved Tuesday directs staff to lease an appropriate site– if one can be found – and provides a back-up plan if a site cannot be identified. A tight real estate market has stymied efforts thus far.
“Right now, time is our enemy,” said County Supervisor Joe Simitian, who represents the North County area where the shelter funding is primarily targeted. “The cold weather months will be on us shortly. Folks who used to find shelter at the Sunnyvale Armory will need somewhere else to go."
In addition to locating and leasing a shelter facility, the plan approved by the Board of Supervisors also directed staff to develop plans for:
A motel voucher program for families with children,
Expanded shelter services at Project WeHOPE in East Palo Alto,
Expanded services at Hotel de Zink in Palo Alto, and
Inclement weather outreach to the County’s homeless population.
Some of these actions will require coordination with local nonprofits and city governments, but Simitian stressed the need for urgency. “Last year, we lost four lives in a week during an unexpected cold spell. That can’t be allowed to happen again.”
“In a region where affordable housing is scarce,” said Mila Zelkha, Director of Real Estate & Facilities for InnVision Shelter Network, “the Board’s approval of this plan helps to provide additional options for those among us who are in crisis.”
Simitian said he was particularly pleased that the County will begin to use motel vouchers for family housing in the community. “This has been a successful approach in other areas, and I think it opens up a whole new set of possibilities,” he said. “Finding suitable space for homeless families has been a long-time challenge in Santa Clara County.”
The Board also included a provision for expanding other homelessness reduction and prevention programs in the event that a large shelter facility cannot be found in time for winter.
“The bad news is we're having a tough time finding a suitable shelter site,” said Supervisor Simitian. “The good news is we've got a fallback plan if no site emerges in the immediate future.”
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