Manteca Mayor Ben Cantu said that he asked more than a year ago that the City of Manteca provide a temporary shelter to protect the homeless from the elements during the cold, wet winter months.
He was told, in short, that such a measure would be “impossible.”
But on Tuesday, the Manteca City Council voted 5-0 to approve an emergency ordinance that authorized just that – giving local non-profit Inner City Action the permission needed to operate a warming center in the parking lot of the city-owned Qualex Building in Industrial Park on days when the low is projected to drop below 40 degrees.
“I brought this to the city a year ago, and I was told that it was impossible,” Cantu said, not specifying who it was in the open meeting who informed him that the request couldn’t be accommodated. “This just goes to show that nothing is impossible if you think outside of the box, and J.D. (Hightower, acting community development director), thank you for thinking outside of the box.”
The request before the council was to approve an emergency ordinance that will allow Inner City Action – once they agree to a hold-harmless agreement and furnish the city with evidence of liability insurance – to begin providing the service in the parking lot of the city-owned building that was one time slated to become the home of the Manteca Police Department.
The council had attempted, unsuccessfully, to try and sell the building to the non-profit for use in their outreach efforts to aid the homeless in Manteca, but that deal fell through when Governor Gavin Newsom failed to approve it along with other bills put before him that would allow property previously owned by redevelopment agencies to be sold at below market rates to non-profits.
The setback aside, Inner City Action CEO Frank Saldana praised the council’s decision, and said that his team of volunteers – some of them people who were at one time on the streets of Manteca – were ready to begin serving the community as part of their mission.
“We’ve built a lot of good relationships here and we’ve got a good team that is ready and willing to give back,” Saldana said. “The council has been very supportive and we’re looking forward to carrying out our ministry.”
Because the matter was time-sensitive – the temperature as early as November dipped below the mark where the site could have been activities – the proposal before the council required a four-fifths vote in order to be approved. A full ordinance that will establish clear guidelines for the practice is expected to be brought back before the council either later this month or early next month for formal adoption.
The City of Manteca has agreed to pledge up to $25,000 in funds earmarked for helping the homeless population of Manteca to the cause to help pay for fuel for the generators that will provide the heat when the warming center is open, and the council also approved the waiving of the fee associated with the temporary occupancy permit that the non-profit will require in order to begin using the facility – saving them just under $600.
The decision, according to Cantu, could also have public safety implications as well.
After years of having make-shift homeless encampments lead to structure fires, Cantu pointed out that the facility should eliminate at least the majority of those instances moving forward.
“This will save a few buildings from being caught on fire,” Cantu quipped while the council was discussing the merits of the plan.
While the proposal came towards the end of Tuesday’s council meeting, it generated no discussion amongst the crowd of mostly supporters of Inner City Action. Save for the council comments championing the proposal and what it means for taking care of the less fortunate in the community, there was no debate was had on the merits of the proposal.
To contact reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.
