City contracting for warming centers

As the temperature drops and the leaves fall, the city of Spokane is contracting with four social service agencies as of today to provide extra shelter for those who are homeless.

Crosswalk and Hope House, both operated by Volunteers of America, are open for teens and single women, respectively. Catholic Charities’ House of Charity is open for single men, and the Salvation Army is serving homeless families.

“We check with the National Weather Service, and centers are only activated when the forecast is below 15 degrees,” said Jerrie Allard, director of human services with the city of Spokane.

“We then call each of the four centers to see if they were full the previous night. If they were full, we activate them as a warming center – which means they will stay open and not turn people away.”

This doesn’t mean homeless people will get a bed to sleep in.

“There are no extra beds – a warming center is a place to gather and perhaps get a cup of coffee and get a blanket and be out of the elements overnight,” Allard said. “This is to make sure we don’t have people sleeping in the alleys.”

Warming shelters get some reimbursement from the city, depending on how many clients they take in.

“We have to be very careful with occupancy rules,” Allard said.

Even if warming centers don’t provide regular lodging, they sometimes serve as gateways to other social services programs for those who are homeless.