City Council spends $75,000 in emergency funds to improve new warming shelter

The Spokane City Council approved $75,000 in emergency funding to renovate the city’s new warming center on South Cannon Street.

The funding will allow the shelter at 527 S. Cannon St. to add bathrooms and showers, install security cameras, and make necessary repairs to the building’s plumbing and electrical systems.

After securing the site last week, the city and the shelter’s operator are racing to open the shelter, which will operate 24/7 and provide a warm place to sleep for up to 120 homeless people this winter.

The city also plans to make improvements related to accessibility at the building, which the city has the option to purchase for $395,000 at the end of a 60-day lease.

The facility is the first part of a multiphase plan to expand warming center capacity for the upcoming winter.

The City Council authorized $179,000 in funding to shelter 50 more people at Truth Ministries, a 42-bed shelter for adult men, at its East Sprague Avenue site through the winter. That figure was close to the $175,000 initially estimated by city officials.

Last week, the council authorized more than $1 million in funding to sign a lease on the Cannon Street shelter and expand services at existing service providers throughout the city for the winter. The council also designated Jewels Helping Hands to operate the Cannon Street warming center.

The council unanimously approved the special budget ordinance releasing the funding on Monday. If bids for work on the Cannon Street shelter come in above $75,000, staff at the Community, Housing & Human Services Department will return to the City Council for approval.