No Place to Sleep

On June 22, the Gilroy Compassion Center hosted Project Homeless Connect, a quarterly event which brings numerous service providers to the same place, at the same time, to make it easier for people who are homeless to find the help they need.

One hundred and eight-three people came, including many families with young children. There was a dental van, a medical van, a BBQ, music, and haircuts. We gave away clothing (the men's pants ran out quickly) and gave out toiletries kits. The Second Harvest Food Bank gave out bags with easy-to-prepare nutritious foods that don't require refrigeration. Santa Clara County Mental Health services, Goodwill Veterans services, a job search workshop, bus tokens, Social Services, and more were also in attendance, offering their services. 

The problem we didn't have a solution for, however, was the one that all of the attendees had in common. "Where can I sleep?" There were housing lists to be signed up for, and a Housing1000 survey, to identify the neediest homeless people in the county and help them find permanent housing, but no emergency shelter, no place to sleep TONIGHT.

A family came to Project Homeless Connect, in serious need of emergency shelter. Mom, dad, and five kids were living out of their car. Their long-term housing situation looks good -- they have a Section 8 voucher, and 30 days to find a place, get it approved, and move in. They even have a potential apartment lined up, but it isn't ready yet. They have some income, through Supplemental Security Income, because dad and one of the kids are disabled (Dad is on the list for an organ transplant.) This month's money has already run out, however -- spent on motel rooms at $70 per night.

While they were at the event, looking for help, the situation became massively worse: the car they had been living out of was repossessed, then and there. Luckily they were able to remove their belongings and pile them under a tree. It was a Friday afternoon. Who could provide a motel voucher? Emergency shelter?

As it turns out, no one. I hit the phones and email lists, to see if sending the family to San Jose would help, if we could even get them there. It wouldn't -- the San Jose Family Shelter has a 3-week waiting list. There is move-in assistance available for when they get their apartment, but nothing to get them through until then.

There is no emergency shelter in South County. There is not even a place where it is legal to sleep outside. The city parks close at dusk.

Homeless people have an incredible challenge each day. They have to find a place to sleep. If they set up an encampment -- with a tent, chair, lantern, box for belongings, let's say, it will be dismantled once it is discovered. If they sleep in their vehicles they will be awakened by the police and told to move on (it is against the law to sleep in your car in Gilroy.) It they try to sleep on private property they are trespassing. A private property owner who allows encampments can be cited for code violations.

There is no place in the community where it is legal for a family to put up a tent, unroll sleeping bags, and hunker down for the night, even if they have no place else to go. They can't even huddle together under a blanket. If they keep the kids awake walking the streets all night, that is child abuse.

Many attendees looked up at the big, cavernous warehouse space where Project Homeless Connect was held and asked why we didn't have a shelter. I explained about the challenges -- to have a shelter we need sprinklers, and to put in sprinklers we need to do a structural upgrade. In short, we need $750,000. For that amount (less than the cost of many single-family homes in Silicon Valley) we could provide over 100 emergency shelter beds and have a temporary place to sleep available for just this sort of situation.

In the meantime, we need to take the humane step of decriminalizing sleeping-while-homeless. Perhaps one city park could be kept open all night, with a bathroom and a security guard. Perhaps churches and businesses could have the option of allowing people to sleep in their parking lots, with a security guard and port-a-potty provided. Other cities have come up with creative ideas along these lines.

We need to do this, and we need help. If you have any ideas, money, connections, that can help make the dream a reality, I invite you to join our effort. My cell phone number is (408) 843-8691. Call me.

Some of the Gilroy Compassion Center board members and volunteers pitched in and came up with enough money to get the homeless family described above into a motel for the weekend, with some additional money for food (there are no soup kitchens open in Gilroy on the weekends.) Today we will regroup to see what other resources are available until the family can move into an apartment.