Homeless Shelters for All Districts Studied

Setting the stage for a showdown over a highly emotional social issue, the San Diego City Council on Monday took the first step toward declaring a homeless shelter crisis and perhaps placing at least one such facility in each council district.

By a 5-3 vote, the council made a procedural move toward approving Councilman John Hartley’s proposal that the city, which has shelter beds for only about one-fifth of its estimated 7,000 homeless persons, officially declare that disparity to be a crisis.

If the council does so when the issue returns to it next month, the crisis declaration would ease zoning roadblocks to homeless shelters.

After rejecting a proposed site for an emergency downtown shelter, the council directed City Manager Jack McGrory to report back in August on alternative locations there as well as in each of the eight council districts.

Given the predictable opposition that homeless shelter proposals provoke, the plan to perhaps create 24-hour, permanent facilities in neighborhoods throughout the city can be expected to produce a political firestorm inside and outside City Hall.

Many churches citywide already provide emergency housing in wet, cold winter months, but Monday’s action could dramatically expand the available housing--as well as broaden the political furor that accompanies it.

Although the potential sites on McGrory’s forthcoming list will only be possibilities, Mayor Maureen O’Connor specified that community groups be notified in advance of the scheduled Aug. 3 hearing in an effort to alleviate tensions over the volatile issue.

“Suggestions somehow turn into reality in the neighborhood, and then they all start storming City Hall,” said O’Connor, who was joined by Councilman Ron Roberts and Councilwoman Judy McCarty in opposing the potential crisis declaration. Councilman Tom Behr was absent for the vote.

Beyond the expected opposition from residents whose neighborhoods are identified as potential sites for shelters, Monday’s proposal also faces a formidable financial obstacle.

Based on a $5-per-bed estimate for “warehouse” emergency shelters where individuals sleep on cots or on floor mats, the cost of housing San Diego’s estimated 7,000 homeless would be $13 million annually. For facilities that provide amenities such as food service or showers and that are staffed by social service professionals, the annual cost could more than double, city officials said.

With the city already facing severe budget constraints, the council instructed McGrory to explore other potential funding sources, including federal grants.

Despite the admittedly high price tag, council members argued that the human cost involved in doing nothing would ultimately be higher.

“We have to spotlight this for all of us--for our city, for our nation,” Councilman Bob Filner said. “We as a city have to at least express our indignation, our solidarity . . . with people who are in need of help. Let’s keep the pressure on ourselves . . . to do something about it.”