FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Feb. 22, 2023

CONTACT:
MayorPress@sandiego.gov

SAN DIEGO Continuing to expand shelter offerings for people experiencing homelessness in the City of San Diego, Mayor Todd Gloria announced today the City has signed a lease agreement and taken possession of a former motel in Barrio Logan to create a new shelter for unhoused families.

As long as there are people living unsheltered in the city of San Diego, we will not stop working to get them off the streets and on a path to housing,Mayor Todd Gloria said.This new shelter will give 42 struggling families a private space of their own to live while we work to connect them to a permanent home.

The bridge housing program will provide families with children experiencing homelessness with a stable place to stay and diverse on-site supportive services, including meals, mail services, security, housing support and case management.

The 42-room site will serve up to 164 individuals and provide an administrative office, laundry room, break room and parking lot. The lease is for an initial seven-month term, with two one-year extension options.

This project adds to the list of non-congregate shelter options the Citys Homelessness Strategies and Solutions Department has added in the past two years. Non-congregate shelters allow for individualized service and increased engagement on the participants part to help resolve their homelessness.

The City is working with partners across the region to find solutions that align with national best practices,said Hafsa Kaka, the Citys Homelessness Strategies and Solutions Department (HSSD) director.We know that families experiencing homelessness engage more and feel safer in non-congregate shelters. We are excited to be delivering another option for families and children that meets the needs of our residents.

HSSD will use approximately $350,000 awarded to the City as part of the County of San Diegos $10 million Capital Emergency Housing Solutions Grant Program. The City is currently working to begin capital improvements and identify a service provider to operate the shelter to serve residents in need as quickly as possible.

This shelter comes on the heels of several other recent shelter openings, includingSeniors Landingin Little Italy, aSafe Haven shelterjust outside of Midway for folks with acute behavioral health challenges, a shelter for women operated by the National Alliance on Mental Illness at theOld Central LibraryDowntown. Other shelters opened during Mayor Glorias tenure include theC-HRT shelterand theRosecrans Shelter, both in Midway, andanother shelter for womenDowntown operated by Catholic Charities. Abridge shelter in the South Bayfor seniors e matched with housing resources has successfully closed and will be transitioned to another shelter in the coming months.

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