There will be 60 fewer shelter beds for women and children in the city of San Diego come late September.
The San Diego Rescue Mission, which has long operated a shelter and a transitional housing program in Bankers Hill, is set to move 50 beds to its new South County Lighthouse facility in National City this fall. It will soon stop welcoming newcomers to its shelter program to facilitate the move. The nonprofit’s more intensive 12-month program with 175 beds for single adults and space for 14 families will remain in Bankers Hill.
Tough timing: While the move will increase shelter offerings in South Bay, the planned closure in the city comes at a challenging time for the city of San Diego. The city expects to be down 732 city-funded shelter beds by early next year following the expected closure of several shelters, including one that shuttered last month. City officials are now seeking replacement options.
Worth noting: The Rescue Mission doesn’t contract with the city. This means the Rescue Mission didn’t have to formally loop San Diego city officials in on its plans. In a statement, the nonprofit acknowledged the tough timing for the city and said it’s “supportive of a long-term shelter facility with a plan of integrating with the other shelters in the city.”
Why the move? Rescue Mission Vice President Paul Armstrong said the nonprofit’s recent capital campaign supporting three new shelters and renovations at its Bankers Hill facility “came in less than hoped.” He said that forced adjustments. Armstrong said the move gives the Rescue Mission more flexibility to adjust the populations it serves and that the nonprofit remains committed to trying to help increase shelter offerings regionwide.
“We don’t want to say goodbye to doing shelter in the city of San Diego forever,” Armstrong said. “We just need to make sure that it’s sustainable.”
Over the last year, the Rescue Mission has opened new shelters in Oceanside and National City. It’s also planning to expand in East County.
Why this is especially tough: Family homelessness has been on the rise and shelters serving them are packed.
Casey Snell of the San Diego Housing Commission said that zero to two rooms open up for families in city-funded shelters in an average month.
Throughout July, the city gradually added nine city-contracted rooms for homeless families and seven units for homeless women at the Salvation Army Interim Family Shelter. Snell said the new beds are already full.
The city has known the city funded shelters were going to close for a long time and sat on their hands. Now it’s a crisis!!!
Planning is not something our city does well.
The less beds the better. There should be zero beds in San Diego.