Million dollar grant helps fund new homeless shelter in Hollister
Some big money is coming to help one Central Coast city address a big need. More than a million dollars is being awarded to a San Benito County as it’s in desperate need of a permanent shelter for homeless people. On Wednesday, NewsChannel 5 went to Hollister to find out how a big chunk of grant money from the state will be used to help the homeless and help the county solve its problem.
San Benito County is receiving a grant for $1.5 million to go toward building a new homeless shelter here in the city of Hollister. Those behind the effort said this grant is just the beginning though, a lot more help will still be needed.
“Right now we’re using the labor camps, the migrant labor camps. So they’re full in the summer so there’s no opportunity we only get it during the winter months when they’re slow,” said Linda Emerson, executive director for the Homeless Coalition of San Benito County.
Emerson said over the past decade, the homeless population has grown substantially, now reaching an estimated 1,100 people. A temporary emergency shelter is available, but she said there’s a much greater need on a day to day basis.
“We’re hoping it can be used as a day center so that the people can come in, wash their clothes, take a shower, maybe get lunch depending on what there’s funding for,” Emerson said.
The new shelter would include men’s and women’s dormitories, restrooms, mailboxes, a kitchen, counseling room and access to the Internet. Mayor Ingacio Velazquez said the grant will cover the cost to build the building and the city plans to apply for future grants to pay for what will go inside.
“We’ve been working on it for about a year with the city and the county as a partnership so we could pool our resources together to make it happen,” explained Velazquez.
Emerson stated while the building is a start, there’s still great need for permanent and transitional housing. She thinks the permanent building will give the homeless a place to get help with more than just temporary shelter from the streets.
“It’s right here where all of the community services are. In one stop mental health, food bank is right here and our facility is going to be out in back,” Emerson said.
Even though the grant money is approved, the city said it could take at least a year or two for the building to up. Both the city and the county claim there’s strong community support for this project, while both have had to compromise to get it to this point.
