On Nov. 27, the Atascadero City Council declined a nonprofit’s request to utilize city property as a temporary warming shelter for homeless individuals during the winter months.
The proposal came after the Atascadero Warming Center’s current hosting site, St. Williams Church, notified the group that it would not be able to accommodate the shelter after Jan. 21, 2019. The Atascadero Warming Center, a group made of volunteers, merged with Transitional Food and Shelter to provide services for medically fragile homeless and the warming center last year.
Transitional Food and Shelter proposed entering into an agreement with the city to jointly provide an overnight warming center at the Atascadero National Guard Armory Jan. 22, through April 15, 2019.
At the Nov. 27 meeting, community members expressed concerns about the location as it is adjacent to the Atascadero Printery, Colony Park, Youth Center, and is across the street from the Atascadero Fine Arts Academy.
Resident Madalyn McDaniel sent the city a letter stating that she believes the proposed location is too close to young students.
“It is inconceivable that anyone would consider exposing children to a multitude of unknown adults without any restrictions or consideration to the adults’ drug additions, criminal history, or anger management issues,” it read.
In Transitional Food and Shelter’s proposal, the city would have been responsible for all the costs of providing shelter in the state armory, including minor repair work, utilities, building maintenance, administrative costs, the cost for national guardsman (required for the security of military equipment), a security guard, janitorial service, and transportation for homeless individuals.
The council unanimously denied the proposal on account of a short timeline, the location, not enough information, and a lack of funding.
The nonprofit provided a no-barrier warming shelter—no requirements are necessary to stay at the shelter—last year. The center was an option for people experiencing homelessness who did not qualify to stay at the El Camino Homeless Organization (ECHO).
According to the staff report, ECHO requires its clients to meet criteria such as sobriety, non-violence, working to break the cycle of homelessness, and being employed or the willingness to work toward employment.
The warming center was open for 101 nights during the winter of 2017-18, according to the staff report. Δ
This article appears in Nov 29 – Dec 9, 2018.
Next….complaints of homeless in the streets.
These newish Atascadero residents say, “REMOVE ALL OF THE HOMELESS FROM ATASCADERO, by any means.”
STOP feeding them, STOP sheltering them and GD it, STOP enabling them. We have to see these same useless cretins, day after day, in our neighborhood streets loitering, begging for handouts and/or pushing their unsightly dirty belongings in stolen grocery carts, sometimes with 1 or 2 dogs in tow (that I’m sure are not properly licensed like ours have to be).
When I have guests come in from out of town, instead of talking about what a quaint little town we live in, usually one of the first things out of my guests mouths, is a negative (as it should be) reference to BUMS near us.
The BUMS constant presence angers us high property and sales tax paying residents to no end, while a bunch of (no) good doers do everything in their bleeding heart ways to accommodate these pariah.
WE WANT THEM ALL OUT OF ATASCADERO, BY ANY MEANS.
I do not make them feel welcome whenever I am within earshot and I’m only getting meaner with my words with these losers that keep us from comfortably letting our mid teenage daughter walk anywhere by herself. We moved here because it was supposed to be a nice, old school safe town. What a big friggen mistake. All aided by the short sighted fools trying to help those that clearly do not wish to be helped outside of taking handouts. If you haven’t noticed, there are help wanted signs up nearly everywhere (for menial but honest work).
STOP THE ENABLING OF THE HOMELESS IN ATASCADERO!
The rise in chronically homeless is a direct result in the decrease in mental health services in the past 20 years. Majority of this population are unable to sustain employment due to symptoms and also co-occurring disorders. It is understandable to be upset about the problem however please have compassion as people experience homelessness for a wide variety of reasons.
Hey M.G.
I see you’re courageous enough to post your Trumpian opinion with your name well hidden from the community. It appears the only thing more yellow than your Fox News journalism is your SPINE. If you’re brave enough to express your bigotry, why aren’t you brave enough to use your real name?
I notice you managed to insert a God reference in there… do you think Jesus would agree with your hatred of poor people?