Construction is underway on two new homeless shelters in the Bay Area — a prefabricated project in Palo Alto for more than 200 people and a tiny home village in Richmond for more than a dozen young adults.
At a groundbreaking ceremony this week for the Palo Alto site, Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian applauded the project planned for near the Baylands at 1237 San Antonio Road as a crucial step toward bringing more of the county’s nearly 10,000 homeless residents indoors.
“We know interim shelter is only part of the solution, but we can’t allow folks to remain on our streets while they wait for permanent housing,” Simitian said in a statement.
The facility, with 88 “modular” units resembling shipping containers, is expected to open by early 2025, officials said. It’s estimated to cost around $37 million, with $22 million coming from California’s $3.75 billion Homekey homeless housing program.
The rest of the money is being put up by the city, county and private sources, including $5 million from Silicon Valley billionaire developer and philanthropist John A. Sobrato. Sobrato’s foundation also put $5 million toward a 204-unit modular shelter also under construction at Branham Lane and Monterey Road in San Jose.
The South Bay nonprofit Life Moves will operate site, providing supportive services with the goal of moving residents into permanent housing. Shelter residents, including families, will be able to stay for around three to six months.
But with a severe shortage of affordable housing in the region, finding residents lasting homes will likely be an ongoing challenge. In Santa Clara County, only about four in 10 people staying in various shelter programs move to permanent housing, according to federal data.
In Richmond, around 13 tiny homes for homeless young adults ages 18 to 24 are set to open in the fall of 2024 at 175 23rd St. off Carlson Boulevard.
As many as 125 youths in the city go without a roof over their heads each night, according to Tiny Village Spirit, an offshoot of a small East Bay nonprofit spearheading the project. Homeless young adults can stay at the planned tiny homes for up to two years and will be offered case management services to help them find permanent housing.
A team of students from the University of San Francisco is working on designing the small homes, which will be built by volunteers and decorated by community artists.
The shelter site will cost about $1 million to build, with most funding coming from private and religious donors, in addition to a grant from Contra Costa County.