After some homeless advocates voiced concern that the city of Monterey was not moving fast enough to establish an emergency warming shelter for the area’s homeless, the city announced Monday how it plans to spend $28,252 for homeless services.
An emergency warming shelter will be run by Interfaith Homeless Emergency Lodging Program (I-HELP) and Outreach Unlimited at the Monterey United Methodist Church starts housing up to six people a night this week and receives $9,712 in city funds.
Monterey Police will now also have $1,500 in motel vouchers to distribute homeless in Monterey on cold nights on behalf of the Salvation Army.
This comes after two homeless men, Trevor Hanson, 38, and Jonathan Richards, 56, likely died of exposure Dec. 14. In the wake of the tragedy police started handing out blankets to people sleeping outside with help from the Salvation Army. Monterey Police contacted Hanson and Richards the night before they died, but only offered them information for potential services.
“We met frequently with many organizations and concerned people over the past months,” says Assistant City Manager Hans Uslar. “I think we’ve come up with a the best way to provide services to homeless members of our community.”
The distribution of funds comes after Monterey City Council allocated a dollar per resident, $28,252, for homeless assistance Dec. 15.
The city is poised to release another $28,252 if Peninsula city also commit to putting a dollar per resident to emergency homeless services. So far, Seaside has declined, saying it already allocated $35,000 to the Veterans Transition Center in the old Fort Ord in November.
Sand City, Carmel and Pacific Grove are still considering dedicating funds to meet the challenge.
The youth shelter that opened last week at Safe Place, 590 Pearl St. Monterey, will receive $5,000 for operational costs. The shelter will house six to 12 homeless youth and runaways 18 to 24 years old per night.
The Salvation Army will also receive $7,000 for 100 motel vouchers at $67 per night at two motels in Seaside and two in Monterey. The remaining $300 will be made available for bus tickets so that homeless people in need of shelter will have transportation.
Another $5,040 will go to Interim, Inc. to provide roughly 90 shelter nights for mentally ill homeless people, who often decline service on all but the coldest nights says Uslar.
The Monterey United Methodist Church will only be able to accommodate six people due to currently zoning restrictions, says Uslar, but the city council is slated to to pass an emergency ordinance on Jan. 19 to cut the red tape and allow up 20 people per night.
The shelter is slated to open by Feb. 1.
In a prepared statement the city of Monterey says it has provided organizations that work with homeless $134,335 in the past two years.