FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday,December 29, 2020

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MayorPress@sandiego.gov

SAN DIEGO As part of his efforts to remain directly involved in the Citys response to homelessness,Mayor Todd Gloriatodayvisitedtheemergency operation at the San Diego Convention Center,established during the COVID-19 pandemic, and heard from representatives of partneragencies about the shelters challenges,successes and opportunities.

Todays tour was incredibly helpful, Mayor Gloria said. I saw and heard firsthand how much careful planning and work the City, County, Housing Commission, and our service provider and convention center teams have put into successfully operating a large-scaleshelterduring this pandemic. This coordinated work and the connections made with residents who are homeless, will pay dividends far into the future as we continue our efforts to make sure everyone in San Diego has a place to call home.

During his two-hour visit, Mayor Gloria was shown thecore areas of the shelter,including twospaces thatservenearly 900peopleper night operated by Alpha Project and Father Joes Villages;themedicalunit thatprovidesaccesstogeneralcare, COVID-19 testing, behavioral health services andserves asintake processing for new clients;the Incident Command Center for staff;andhousing navigation areas.

Staff from the City of San Diego, County of San Diego, San Diego Housing Commission, Convention Center, Alpha Project and Father Joes Villages offered Mayor Gloriaan overviewof the operation, which openedin April 2020.

A portion of the discussion detailedthe roles and structure thathavehelped thetemporary shelter at the Convention Centerquickly adapt and respond to issues that have arisen for many regional organizations involved. The shelterfollowsthe standardized response structure known as an Incident Command System(ICS)that is often used in fire, hurricane, earthquake and other disaster or emergency situations.

The primary role of ICS is to establish planning and management functions to work in a coordinated and systematic approach.

The system has allowed for clear lines of communication among all partners; the acquisition of suppliessuch aspersonal protective equipment, hand sanitizer and other needs to prevent the spread of illness;oversight of adherence to pre-established protocols for cleaning, physical distance and mask-wearing guidelines;and identifying and quickly transitioning individuals who test positive for COVID off-site until they are medically cleared to return.

The City of San Diego has served as the lead agency for the Incident Command out of the Convention Center, under the leadership of Deputy Fire Chief ChrisHeiser,who has decades of experience in EMS and fire response.Leadership from the other agenciesfill the other critical roles on the team.

In my career with San Diego Fire-Rescue, Ive seen the ICS system deployed successfully for many natural disaster and relief efforts, but never for a homeless shelter during a health crisis, Deputy ChiefHeisersaid. San Diego has proven that this model can be applied and adapted for even the most unique circumstances and be successful in achieving the desired objectives. Im honored to have been selected to lead such a critical incident serving San Diegos homeless population.

Since April, Operation Shelter to Home has servedmore than3,600peoplein San Diego experiencing homelessness with a safe place to shelter.It provides24-hour security, meals, showers, bathrooms, laundry services, healthcare, mental and behavioral health services, and housing navigationservices. The concerted efforts tofind housing forshelterresidents havehelpedmore than1,055individuals and 43 families obtain permanent and longer-term housing. Hundreds more have been matched to housing resources like vouchers or other rental subsidies.

Updates on the shelter are posted online atsandiego.gov/coronavirus/sheltertohome.

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