Soup Kitchen Will Get Help Finding New Home

City officials said Tuesday that they will meet with organizers of Someone Cares Soup Kitchen to offer help to the charity as it searches for a new home.

Councilwoman Mary Hornbuckle said she was surprised by the news last week that Someone Cares had been told to move out from First United Methodist Church, where it has served lunches to the poor and homeless of Costa Mesa for four years.

“I certainly respect the work they have been doing,” Hornbuckle said. “I think they do serve a purpose in the community, and I would be very sad to see them disappear altogether.”

Hornbuckle said there is little chance that the soup kitchen could move into a city-owned property.

Nor is it likely that Someone Cares would return to its previous headquarters at Rea Community Center, owned by the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, she said.

Hornbuckle said she and other city officials, however, want to help the soup kitchen find a permanent location.

In its 10 years of operation in Costa Mesa, Someone Cares has moved several times because residents have complained about the large number of homeless people it has attracted.

“We are going to be looking for a place that will have minimal impact on the neighborhood and the residents,” Hornbuckle said.

The Rev. Steve Isenman of First United Methodist Church, on 19th Street in downtown Costa Mesa, said that he had received complaints from nearby businesses and residents about the homeless congregating near the church.