Winter Shelter Program

The City of San Diego will begin the operation of the 2005-2006 Winter Homeless Shelter Program with the opening of two shelter locations on Wednesday, December 7, for single adults and veterans, as well as a new system of care for families.

The two shelters are located at different locations, each with its own social service operator. The single adult program will provide 200 beds nightly at 1535 Newton Avenue in Downtown's East Village and will be operated by the Alpha Project. The Vietnam Veterans of San Diego will operate the site located at 2801½ Sports Arena Boulevard in the Midway/Sports Arena area, assisting 150 veterans.

The family program will be managed through a City and County collaborative with the San Diego Rescue Mission and the YWCA. As part of the County's existing hotel/motel voucher program, homeless families will be provided safety and shelter. Families will enter the program at the Rescue Mission's overnight emergency shelter program where the County will assign case managers and make assessments for each family. Qualified families will be placed into hotels or motels funded through the County's voucher program. Families may also be placed in the City's Cortez Hill Family Center as certain benchmarks and criteria are met. The fully case-managed program results in families in need being placed in appropriate housing, and because of the cost-effectiveness of this program, the length of stay can be extended up to 150 days. By providing case management from initial contact the successful outcomes result in increased stability, income from employment or benefit placement and long-term housing

The 2005-2006 Winter Homeless Shelter Program marks the 19th consecutive year the City of San Diego has assisted the homeless during the coldest and wettest winter months. The programs will provide meals, shelter and social services, including medical and mental health attention, for up to 410 homeless San Diegans daily.

The City of San Diego, the County's Health and Human Services Agency and a number of other nonprofit agencies will provide more than 1,500 hours of supportive services, including medical and mental health care and substance abuse recovery programs at each of the program sites. The $590,000 budget for the 2005-2006 Winter Homeless Shelter Program is comprised of funding from the City of San Diego, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the San Diego Housing Commission. Additional funding was provided by the San Diego City Council contributions and core program funding.