By Khalida Sarwari
A group of transients and volunteers at the North County Winter Shelter in Sunnyvale have joined forces to advocate for turning the shelter into a year-round operation.
They brought their idea to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors and at a recent San Jose community meeting on housing.
But it’s not the first time such a plan has been proposed. The idea’s been on the table as far back as 2011 and was resurrected as recently as last year, said Stephanie Demos, chief development officer with HomeFirst, an organization that provides services, shelter and housing opportunities to the homeless and those at risk of homelessness in Santa Clara County.
While aware and supportive of their efforts, Demos said the shelter isn’t actively involved in the group’s efforts.
“HomeFirst has the same desire, (but) we just have a realistic view of what can and can’t be done right now,” she said.
Demos said the group faces many obstacles. For one, some residents have indicated they don’t want a permanent shelter in their neighborhood.
“You have people in the neighborhood who sometimes are welcoming with open arms, but sometimes have trepidation about having a group of homeless move in more or less and we have to be cognizant of their concerns as well,” she said.
Funding and space limitations pose additional challenges, Demos said. And ultimately, it will be up to the Board of Supervisors to make the call, since it provides funding for the shelters. But for now, it appears HomeFirst will root for the advocates, at least from the bleachers.
“We recognize and respect their passion and we hope for the same results eventually,” Demos said.
For many, the North County Winter Shelter serves as a respite from danger and the elements. Situated at 999 Hamlin Court, the new 125-bed shelter offers families and individuals hot meals, showers, sleeping mats, laundry facilities and a to-go pack of snacks to get them by during the day. Whereas it once operated solely as an emergency shelter, it now offers referral services to its clients and assists in helping them transition into permanent housing.
Supervisor Joe Simitian, who represents much of the North County and West Valley, led many of the efforts that have contributed to the evolution of the shelter from one that operated on an emergency basis to something that is now halfway to a permanent homeless shelter. While acknowledging there is more he can do, Simitian noted the board’s hands are tied, financially, at least for the moment.
“How quickly can we get there, I think that’s the question. Is this a process that’s underway? I would say that it is. Is there certainty? There is not. To put it in simpler terms, right now there is no money in the county budget,” Simitian said.
Analogizing the shelter to the emergency room of a hospital, Simitian suggested that it, like other cold weather shelters, was established only to provide a roof and a hot meal when temperatures dropped. Still, there is potential to turn it into a year-round operation, he said, but “that is a conversation that’s still in the works.”
“Is our work here done? No,” he said. “We have more work to do.”
Both Simitian and Demos indicated the shelter has made strides in meeting its clients’ needs. The cold weather program has been expanded from four to six months and the Sunnyvale shelter has started working closely with the newly opened and comparatively smaller shelter at Trinity United Methodist Church in Mountain View to let its residents stay at the Sunnyvale shelter after it’s converted back to a church in the mornings.
The shelter is also working on making space for an additional 50 beds for the 2018-19 season, Simitian said, which would increase the capacity to 175 beds.
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