Finalists for Indoor-Outdoor Homeless Shelters Unveiled

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Three days before a critical meeting of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, officials have identified the six spots across the county that will be considered for the long-awaited indoor-outdoor homeless shelters.

The sites are:

The Aston area of the Sonoma County Fairgrounds (Santa Rosa)
The Cloverdale Rail Depot at 501 Asti Road (Cloverdale)
Permit Sonoma Parking Lot (Santa Rosa)
The Chanate Lab Parking Lot, 3313 Chanate Road (Santa Rosa)
Parking Lot at 4040 Santa Rosa Avenue (Santa Rosa)
Chanate Hall at 3333 Chanate Road (Santa Rosa)

The criteria for choosing the sites included access, including a paved surface, access to electricity and other infrastructure, and access to transportation and services.

According to the county, any sites eventually chosen will likely contain a combination of on-site structures, RV space with hookups, and safe parking. Each shelter location will also include a navigation center with the ultimate goal of connecting the unsheltered to permanent supportive housing.

Vocal advocates for the homeless have long pushed for a site at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds. The finalists include the Aston area of the fairgrounds, on the south side of the property, which is an area of open space and horse stables.

At the Tuesday meeting, supervisors plan to narrow the choices down to two or three, with the final choice expected at the board meeting on March 24th. The county says its goal it to have the two pilot indoor-outdoor shelter sites up and running by the end of April, when the temporary Los Guilicos emergency shelter site is scheduled to close.

The indoor-outdoor shelters are part of an almost $12 million suite of actions approved by supervisors in late December to address the Joe Rodota homeless emergency, and also the greater problem of homelessness across Sonoma County.