Sacramento County votes to buy warehouse for large homeless shelter. Here’s where
The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors approved the purchase of a roughly $23 million property Tuesday, moving forward with its plan for a new homeless shelter that will place unhoused people in cabins, and provide spaces for people living in vehicles.
The five-member board was unanimous in its approval of the North Highlands 13-acre site, which will feature a 130,000-square-foot warehouse and is near one of Sacramento’s largest vehicle encampments. The project, located at 4837 Watt Ave., will be the first time the county offers “safe parking,” said Director of Homeless Initiatives Emily Halcon.
“While we certainly know a vehicle is not a long-term housing or sheltering option, this will give us the opportunity for people to come and safely park their cars and engage in services and hopefully exit out of homelessness,” Halcon said.
The site will prioritize people who are already living near the area. Length of stay has not yet been determined, but Halcon said the expectation is for the site to be a “permanent fixture” for residents until no longer needed.
The seller, a Delaware-based LLC, had asked the county to move forward with the purchase so it could discontinue the marketing.
“We have dual responsibilities on this board,” Supervisor Rich Desmond said. “One is to those who need help, you know, those who are unsheltered living on our streets and open spaces are in their RVs. But we also have an obligation to ensure high quality life for our small businesses and residents in their neighborhoods. And we call that out specifically in this board item, we are endeavoring to meet both of those dual obligations.”
The site is in Desmond’s district, while also nearing the borders of Supervisors Phil Serna and Sue Frost’s district. All three supervisors spoke about “productive” past community meetings centered on residential and business engagement. The next community meeting is scheduled for Nov. 1.
“So far, the conversations I’m having in North Highlands are very positive... They’re excited,” said Frost.
Halcon said the project’s capital costs are expected to be covered with $18 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds and $4 million in discretionary funds allotted to Supervisors Desmond, Frost, Serna and Patrick Kennedy.
Further information on the project will be brought forth to the board at its Nov. 15 meeting. Among the expected details are conceptional site plan, ongoing operational costs, and unit estimates.
The project comes after months of criticism directed at the county for its lack of available homeless shelters. Serna said he hoped the site would help quell that criticism.
“I’m hopeful that those that have been critical of the county for months now, insinuating that we’re not doing as much or we’re not doing anything at all... now understand that we were doing our due diligence,” Serna said.
The Bee’s Theresa Clift contributed to this story.
This story was originally published October 26, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
