Temporary cold weather homeless shelter likely to remain on Mountain Avenue for another year

Despite efforts to try and relocate a temporary shelter for men experiencing homelessness, the shelter will stay at 212 Mountain Ave. for another season pending Fort Collins City Council’s approval.

The city, in partnership with Fort Collins Rescue Mission and Vineyard Church, had hoped to relocate the shelter to 1213 Riverside Ave., part of the Vineyard campus, to serve about 50 men experiencing homelessness.

The preliminary design review application filed with the city for that site outlined the desire to operate the seasonal shelter 24/7, dependent on funding, for about three years or until Fort Collins Rescue Mission builds a larger, permanent shelter. City staff estimated it would have cost more than $1 million to transform the church’s building into a shelter.

However, the funding for renovations wasn’t able to come together so the city had to find another site to house people during the cold months this year, said Brittany Depew, the city’s homeless response and solutions lead specialist.

And that site was 212 W. Mountain Ave.

“In the winter, people being turned away is much more a life safety concern,” Depew said. “So we work hard with partners in the community to increase shelter space so that people are not getting turned away when it's cold outside.”

The city had hoped not to host the shelter on Mountain Avenue again this year for a number of reasons.

Ideally, Depew said, they want to find a site that would be able to operate year-round and could accommodate a lease longer than six months so that this process doesn’t occur annually.

But they also weigh the impact on neighbors and neighboring businesses, she said, and want to relocate the shelter to a different part of town year to year.

“Because it was there last year, and it does have impacts on neighbors and nearby businesses ... if we move it around the city a little bit more, it kind of spreads that impact out a little bit,” Depew said.

The Vineyard location is still being looked at as a longer-term option for the future, and the city is actively exploring other options for winter shelters, too. Because the search is still on, it’s possible the shelter could move locations mid-season or in May if they’re able to find somewhere to lease year-round.

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Some details still to come, but shelter will operate similar to last year

The shelter on Mountain Avenue is a joint effort between the city of Fort Collins, which owns the building, and the Fort Collins Rescue Mission, which is headquartered less than a mile away from the temporary shelter and operates it.

It usually operates from November to April and can provide 44 extra beds to men experiencing homelessness. It will open only overnight to provide a warm place to sleep; last year, the shelter’s hours were 5 p.m. to 8 a.m., but as of Oct. 3, Depew couldn’t confirm they would be the same.

There will be security at the shelter when it's open, but because the funding for this year's shelter came from money allocated in the American Rescue Plan Act, the city had to put out a request for proposal and doesn't yet know which company will provide security.

To address the community impacts of the shelter on the Mountain Avenue community, there will be a virtual community meeting from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 19, for neighbors and businesses to ask questions of the city and Fort Collins Rescue Mission.

The most common concerns the city hears regarding shelters and people experiencing homelessness are about people lingering around the night shelter during the day, spending time on the sidewalks and blocking rights of way; increased trash around an area; and increased noise in an area, Depew said.

One benefit of the city hosting the shelter at the same place two years in a row is that concerns from last year’s operation are already being addressed.

“We have a lot of knowledge from last year to build on,” Depew said, adding that they’re thinking of getting the building its own dumpster so other businesses’ aren’t used, adding a sharps container in the shelter, adding lighting to the area and increasing daytime police patrol.

“We know what to expect and we can really start to address things now, and we are, and we're working hard to make it a safe space for everyone,” she said.

It's expected that the ordinance for the shelter to be located at 212 W. Mountain Ave. will go before City Council within the next month, Depew said.

For more information on how to participate in the virtual discussion on Oct. 19, check http://www.fcgov.com/developmentreview/proposals. Virtual meeting information will be posted at least 48 hours prior to the meeting time.

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Molly Bohannon covers city government for the Coloradoan. Follow her on Twitter @molboha or contact her at mbohannon@coloradoan.com. Support her work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Fort Collins' winter homeless shelter likely to stay on Mountain Ave.