Costa Mesa may buy West 17th Street property for homeless shelter; City Council considering expanded homeless efforts on Tuesday
Costa Mesa could become the latest Orange County city to try to satisfy its obligations in addressing the region’s homeless crisis by building an emergency shelter.
The City Council on Tuesday is expected to consider a two-pronged solution that would cost $5.7 million: improving and expanding existing facilities for the homeless at Lighthouse CM Church of the Nazarene, which would operate for about nine months; and buying an industrial property at the end of West 17th Street to create a new shelter for long-term use.
Both locations are on the city’s west side and each would have about 50 beds, a number determined by discussions with U.S. District Court Judge David O. Carter, who is overseeing lawsuits filed against Orange County and its cities over the clearing of the Santa Ana River encampment last year.
Costa Mesa Mayor Katrina Foley said she met with Carter on Friday to secure his approval for the plan, which also includes general improvements to the Westside.
“Right now this is a location that’s already an existing homeless hub, and we’re going to try to restore the character and the safety of the neighborhood,” she said.
Besides offering homeless people a place to go with an array of services, the city is already working on road improvements, a new fence for the nearby senior center and an upgrade of Lion’s Park. Foley said officials will consider other requests from residents.
The Lighthouse church already serves as a cold weather shelter, and the city would improve the property and expand on services there, bringing in modular buildings for beds, showers, restrooms and storage of belongings. It would close once the longer-term shelter is up and running.
That shelter, planned at 1040 W. 17th St., would be run like the Bridges at Kraemer Place, a county-owned shelter in Anaheim that takes clients by referral only and provides 24-hour staffing and security on site.
“The goal will be that at the end of the day people won’t notice that it’s a homeless shelter,” Foley said.
Cities including Santa Ana and Anaheim have pushed ahead with developing emergency shelters to settle the lawsuit and address neighborhood complaints about homelessness, but proposals in others, including Irvine, Buena Park and Fullerton, have faced public outcry over suggested shelter locations.
Whatever ire they may face from the community for building a shelter, local officials are worried about the alternative. Following a September federal appeals court ruling out of Idaho, cities that don’t provide adequate shelter for the homeless could be barred from enforcing rules against public camping.
Councilwoman Arlis Reynolds, who represents the area where the shelters are proposed, said homelessness and related public safety issues were “the No. 1 priority” she heard from residents during her campaign for office last fall.
“We’re committed to long-term monitoring and making sure this results in a positive” for the city, she said.
The Costa Mesa City Council meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 15, at the Senior Center, 695 W. 19th St.