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San Diego announces plans for a new 1,000-person homeless shelter in Middletown

City plans to lease a commercial building on Kettner for 35 years to house the city's largest homeless shelter.

SAN DIEGO — San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria announced Thursday plans to lease a vacant commercial building in Middletown and convert it into the city's largest homeless shelter.

At a news conference, the mayor said if approved by the San Diego City Council, the new shelter site will provide space for more than 1,000 people. 

The nearly 65,000 square foot building is located in an industrial area at 3570 Kettner Blvd, just north of Washington Street and Interstate 5. It used to house a commercial printing business.

"A thousand people off the streets, off the sidewalks, out of the riverbeds, off our beaches, instead connected to care and on a path to permanent housing," said Mayor Gloria. "This is the bold action I know San Diegans expect from their leaders."

He said the long-term shelter will include on-site security, case workers, a commercial kitchen, restrooms, showers and a recreation area. There's also space to house families.

"As long as we're finding a solution and not just shuffling people around. I'm always about that. We're all people on this earth struggling," said Shawn Silverthorn.

He works at a restaurant near the proposed shelter site. 

"More families are around here so I would say that could be a problem. I don't see it as often but if there's a site close then I could see it as an issue for sure," he said.

San Diego resident Kyra Adkins says more shelter space is needed.

"So that seems like a huge number all concentrated in one area but if you walk down there, there are 1000 people from here to Point Loma living on the streets in really wretched conditions. It sounds like we can provide a safer place for people," said Kyra Adkins, who lives in San Diego.

Mayoral candidate Larry Turner says citizens should have been part of the conversation.

"I've been hearing that site was being looked at over a few months. Right now I'm a little upset that they haven't learned the lesson to talk to the neighborhood first and try to get their buy in. I'm sure there are a lot of people in the neighborhood just hearing it for the first time today," he said.

The mayor didn't reveal the price tag of the shelter during the news conference. However, Rachel Laing, a spokesperson with the mayor's office e-mailed CBS 8 details Thursday afternoon. She said base rent is $1.9 million annually. It includes two 5-year extension options. She said property improvements will be up to $18 million paid for with a combination of philanthropic funds and state and federal funding.

It's unclear how long plans have been in the works for the shelter. According to real estate site listings, a private owner purchased the property for more than $13 million. The deal closed on Tuesday.

WATCH: The financial details of the plan:

When asked if the site had been properly vetted, Christina Bibler, the director of economic development told reporters the city has taken a "pretty intensive look" with its city experts. She said they're also working with the property owner to ensure they understand what studies have been completed on site, and what current existing conditions are.

"We've worked with the city engineer, the fire marshall, development services, etc. trying to understand all of the things we don't know today, to properly vet this property for a long term solution," said Bibler.

Meanwhile, Mayor Gloria said plans for H Barracks are still moving forward. However, there has been a shift.

"With the city council's approval at Kettner and Vine, we intend to use H Barracks to primarily expand our successful Safe Parking Lot Program for people living in vehicles," said Mayor Gloria. "H Barracks will provide space for roughly 200 households to sleep in their vehicles while they work to address the underlying causes of their homelessness."

Plans for H Barracks originally included 700 beds.

The Kettner and Vine proposal will go before a city committee on April 18. It will need the council's approval before it passes. 

Mayor Gloria said if approved, the shelter could open as early as 2025.

WATCH RELATED: San Diego homeless shelter plans could house 1000 people, 200 vehicles

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