Olmsted County readies pitch for larger homeless shelter

Jun. 27—ROCHESTER — Olmsted County is pondering a plan to potentially double local shelter beds less than four years after the Rochester Community Warming Center opened.

"On average, they are turning away one to three to four people a night," Olmsted County Housing Director Dave Dunn said of the 45 beds available at the county-owned nightly shelter operated by Catholic Charities of Southern Minnesota.

The Minnesota Legislature has approved spending $100 million to help build permanent shelters for people facing homelessness throughout the state, with at least $40 million being spent outside the metro area.

Dunn said once the state requests applications for funding, the county expects to have 90 to 100 days to submit a plan, so work is underway to finalize some details.

"To have that strong response, we will need to have a site selected, we will need to have some kind of architectural rendering, we will need to have cost estimates, and we need to have operating partnership agreements," he said.

At this point, a site hasn't been defined, but Dunn has told county commissioners that a downtown shelter is preferred.

Commissioners have largely ruled out renovating the existing shelter, which could be expanded from 45 to 60 beds for an estimated $2 million to $4 million, but would face limits on future options.

"Generally, we are beyond the life expectancy of the building," said Mat Miller, the county's director of facilities and building operations. He said recent renovations have been limited due to the building's age.

Since 2018, nearly $1.5 million has been spent on the shelter, which originally housed 30 beds and was expanded to 45 in 2021.

Dunn said plans for a new facility would likely include 80 to 100 beds, with several options being considered as a potential location, including the county-owned site of the former Subway restaurant at the intersection of Fourth Street Southeast and Third Avenue.

"We are evaluating about half a dozen county-owned sites to see if the building would fit," he said.

Commissioner Mark Thein encouraged Dunn to also look at the potential for repurposing existing buildings, rather than starting from scratch.

He also voiced concern about building a larger shelter.

"I worry we are going to have a field of dreams here," he said. "If we build it, they are going to come."

Dunn said expanding the number of shelter beds is aimed at addressing the current need, which has people camping in public spaces when there are no beds available. He said it's rare that people move into a community to use shelter space, since that would take a plan that goes beyond day-to-day survival.

"The ability to look forward (when homeless) is really about 12 hours," he said.

Commissioner Laurel Podulke-Smith said she supports the expansion as a way to address growing community needs.

"I do think that increasing capacity through new construction or a new site will help alleviate the encampment problem," she said.

In addition to more shelter beds, Dunn said a larger facility is expected to include improved access to services to help people find housing. He said the existing Empowering Connections and Housing Outreach Center next to the current shelter has proven the benefit of combining locations.

"We saw over 250 visitors there last month," he said.

Expansion will likely also help address other needs identified through the work of a local group working to identify shelter needs. The county and city of Rochester are involved in the effort, along with local nonprofits.

Other amenities of a new shelter could include storage space for people's belongings, covered space to gather while waiting for access at night and dedicated beds for people between the ages of 18 and 24.

Dunn said the dedicated "youth" beds are key, since most people in that age group are likely facing additional challenges.

"Being in a shelter at that age, with being new to a lot of things in life, can be detrimental to their growth and development," he said.

While an option for expanding the plan to include transitional housing is being discussed, the cost could get in the way.

Dunn said preliminary estimates for a shelter with added services could cost $8 million to $9 million, while adding up to 20 to 30 units of transitional housing could increase the cost by $5 million to $6 million.

With potential state funding capped at $10 million with the likelihood of a $1 million local match, commissioners have suggested plans should not exceed $11 million.

Commissioner Sheila Kiscaden said she believes the county has a good chance of obtaining a share of the state funds.

"I think we are well positioned as a community and well known to draw down that money for an emergency shelter," she said.