Homelessness has increased in San Diego County, and it’s especially apparent in several cities where tents and makeshift structures fill sidewalks, canyons and freeway offramps.
The count usually is done annually, but this was the first since January 2020 because of the pandemicSince the last count, the city has purchased two extended-stay hotels and converted them to permanent housing for more than 400 formerly homeless people, Father Joe’s Villages has opened a 407-unit affordable housing project, and the city and county have worked together to increase outreach teams and other efforts.
The city has added 271 shelter beds in the past year, a 25 percent increase, bringing the total to 1,468. An additional 450 beds are coming in the next few months, including a 125-bed shelter in the Midway area, a 40-bed women’s shelter and a 182-bed shelter for seniors and families that will be in two sites that have not yet been announced.
The increase in the city’s unsheltered homeless population is most noticeable in several city blocks near Father Joe’s Villages on Imperial Avenue, and it was documented in an unrelated monthly count of homeless people conducted by the Downtown San Diego Partnership. “There are rays of sunshine to point to, more reasons for optimism, but at the same time I have to be extremely practical,” Gloria said, noting that rents are rising, an eviction moratorium is lifting and many people are affected by mental health issues.
The count results always come with the caveat that it is not a precise science. While the tally of people in shelters is a simple head count, finding people elsewhere is more challenging for the teams of volunteers who scour the county with flashlights and questionnaires in pre-dawn hours. Kohler said the explanation can be found in an 11 percent decrease in the number of people in shelters, which offset the increase of people living outdoors. The shelter population dropped in part because the count was taken the same week people were moving directly from shelters into the newly opened 407-unit St. Teresa of Calcutta housing project built by Father Joe’s Villages.
“We are observing this information and acting,” Gloria said. Recent actions have included the opening of aon Sports Arena Boulevard that will focus on people with addictions and mental problems, he said. The 125-bed shelter that will open on Rosecrans Street this year will be staffed with mental health providers, and a 22-bed safe-haven shelter also planned to open soon will help people with addictions.
Shelters =/= homes
Shelters are by definition temporary. Thus homelessness persists... especially when the inventory is low and the costs are astronomical.
How about more housing
Thank you, Gary, for the ongoing account of such a complex issue.
Maybe the homeless need homes, not shelters and outreach
Wonder if this has to do with the ongoing housing shortage and massive housing cost spike we’ve seen over the last year 🤔
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