SAN DIEGO — The city of San Diego's new Safe Sleeping site was touted as part of the city's solution to the shortage of emergency shelter beds.
However, CBS 8 obtained city permits which show that the future 136-tent space which opened on June 29 must close by December 28 and can not be extended. The site, according to city documents will cost approximately $2 million to operate for that time.
In a July 1 letter, Fire Marshall Anthony Tosca outlined the requirements of the 180-day temporary Fire Code Permit.
The requirements include bathrooms and showers outside, thermometers inside tents to ensure that the tents do not fall below 50 degrees, 24-hour security, and adherence to a bevy of other rules.
"The continued use, occupancy, and approval are conditional pending the continued requirements of this letter are met. An extension beyond 180 days of the fire permit will not be granted. Use beyond 180 days will have to meet the 2022 California Building Code Requirements under the City’s Shelter Declaration"
That building code requires that floors be raised no less than four inches off of the ground. The code also requires inside temperatures to remain above 50 degrees.
Mayor Todd Gloria's Office says the Safe Sleeping site was always temporary and city staff presented it as such during a June 13 presentation to city council as well as on other instances.
Additionally, nearly two weeks after opening the Safe Sleeping site at the city's Operation's Yard near Golden Hill, the site is still experiencing growing pains. As of July 10, a spokesperson for the mayor told CBS 8 that there were 28 people sleeping at the site in a total of 21 tents. That is 115 tents short of the number of capacity.
Showers are also missing at the Safe Sleeping site, however, Mayor Gloria staff says those should arrive sometime this week.
According to a June 13 city report, the city funds 1,784 emergency shelter beds, not including the 136 tents at the Golden Hill site or the expected 400 tents at a future safe camping site in Balboa Park. More than 900 beds, however, will be taken offline in the coming year when three city shelters close.
And while no mention of the 180-day timeline for the Safe Sleeping site was included in city staff's presentation to city council or in the city's Comprehensive Shelter Strategy, both the camping site in Golden Hill and the future one in Balboa Park were listed as "short and medium term" solutions.
In a July 10 email mayoral spokesperson David Rolland said it was widely known that these sites would only operate on a temporary basis.
"The Mayor has said on multiple occasions that Safe Sleeping at these sites is temporary, including during his media briefing last Thursday (July 6).
As for what the city plans to do to replace the camping site when it closes in December, another city spokesperson tells CBS 8, "Our goal is to get all clients enrolled in this program into a congregate or non-congregate shelter space. Safe camping is a temporary program to get clients off the street while we work to find new shelter options. [Homeless Services] will routinely analyze data from the Safe Sleeping program and provide recommendations on the future of the program.”
Homeless advocate Michael McConnell says it's more of the same from the Mayor's Office.
"It's bits and pieces here and there to make it look like he is doing something," said McConnell. "They have 20-some people staying there with no showers. By the time the city gets it fully operational, it won't be long until they have to start winding it down. This isn't helping people, it was never about helping people. It is just scooting people off the sidewalk."
