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TEMPORARY WINTER OVERFLOW SHELTER FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Why was the Calvin Smith Library chosen as the site for the Temporary Overflow Shelter? State law requires the Mayors of Salt Lake County to recommend sites for a temporary overflow shelter. Salt Lake County offered the use of the Calvin Smith Library free of charge, which frees up money otherwise paid in a lease to improve services and the site itself. The library is also relatively close to social services, which makes transporting clients more practical. No other site nominated this year had the open floorplan, hot and cold running water, and heating and cooling that this library had. The building can be modified to humanely function as a temporary overflow shelter with a minimum of improvements. How many people will be at the temporary overflow shelter? The temporary overflow shelter will house approximately 100 people total, including men and women. FEMA requirements for emergency shelters will prohibit more than 120 people at the temporary overflow shelter. Reports in the media about the shelter housing 300 people are inaccurate. How long will the temporary overflow shelter be in operation? The temporary overflow shelter is designed to provide emergency shelter for the homeless during the cold winter months. The shelter will close on or before April 30, 2023. What are the hours of operation? The hours of operation will be from 7 pm to 7 am. Everyone sleeping at the temporary overflow shelter will have to leave and take their belongings with them each day. Clients will be transported to and from existing homeless resource centers in Salt Lake County, where other resources are available, including breakfast. There will be no meals served at the overnight shelter. How will the shelter be staffed? Switchpoint will have 4 or 5 employees permanently on site while the shelter is occupied. In addition to their employees, Switchpoint is hiring on-site private security to monitor the building and the site. Security will be doing hourly rounds of the premises. When Millcreek last hosted a winter overflow shelter (In the 2020-2021 winter at the former Osmond Senior Living Memory Care facility at 950 East 3300 South), Switchpoint was also the operator and we experienced a minimal impact from that facility. Switchpoint has a proven track record. What happens if a client doesn’t want to be transported? Can they just leave the shelter? The temporary overflow shelter will have a code of conduct that will encourage people to stay on the premises overnight and take transportation to and from the shelter. However, the temporary overflow shelter is not a jail. If someone wants to leave, Switchpoint will refer them to social services and arrange special transportation. Switchpoint staff will also inform them that camping is prohibited in Millcreek, and that they are not allowed to trespass onto other property. Staff will also notify police if this happens. How will you stop camping and crime in my neighborhood? Camping is illegal in Millcreek, and if you see it, please call Unified Police Dispatch at [PHONE REDACTED]. “No Camping” signs will be posted on all streets within 1,000 feet of the shelter and in Scott Avenue ---PAGE BREAK--- Park. Police patrols will be added in the neighborhood regularly, day and night, until the temporary overflow shelter closes. Patrols will be on foot or bicycle, weather permitting. UPD will strictly enforce the “no camping” ordinance within 1,000 feet of the facility. We are also adding streetlights to the neighborhood streets near the temporary overflow shelter. The parking lot lights will be illuminated on the property during nighttime hours. Who’s paying for the temporary overflow shelter? State funding will provide for approximately $500,000 to fund additional police patrols and to enhance the temporary overflow shelter site itself. We will use this money to: 1. Pay for additional police officers and any overtime for additional patrols. 2. Erect a screen fence and barriers between the building and 3300 South, and behind the building. 3. Add streetlights in the neighborhoods south of the shelter. 4. Contract with a service provider to keep our streets and properties clean if we encounter debris, hazardous waste, or encampments over the winter. The temporary overflow shelter is close to Roosevelt Continuation School. Are you concerned? Because of this, Millcreek is insisting that the State provide other safe and humane locations for known registered sex offenders and to not refer them to the temporary overflow shelter in Millcreek. Will the temporary overflow shelter affect my business or property values? It’s important to understand that the overflow shelter is temporary, with a duration of approximately 200 days. Other neighborhoods have hosted temporary overflow shelters, including Sugar House, North Temple, and Millcreek. There is no evidence in any of these cases that the temporary shelter harmed business or property values, including in a comprehensive Salt Lake City report. We are aware of homeless people loitering and camping in our neighborhoods already, which is why we are stepping up police patrols and a funding process where we can rapidly clean up debris when we find it. We want to work proactively with area businesses and property owners during the operation of the shelter. Millcreek is setting up a weekly coordinating meeting with Unified Police and the shelter operator, and your input is important to us as we lead up to those meetings. Will we be asked to host a temporary overflow shelter again next year? No. New state laws require that communities around Salt Lake County take turns hosting a temporary overflow shelter. Millcreek cannot be asked to host a temporary overflow shelter for the next three years. We believe strongly that every community has a responsibility to care for the most vulnerable, and that burden should not rest solely on the residents of Salt Lake City, South Salt Lake, Midvale, or Millcreek. Additionally, the library will likely be used for other commercial purposes a year from now and be unavailable for future homeless assistance. For answers to additional questions, please contact: Francis Lilly, Millcreek Assistant City Manager & Planning Director [EMAIL REDACTED] [PHONE REDACTED]