Huntington eyes Costa Mesa homeless shelter site
Huntington Beach’s property search for a homeless shelter is expanding beyond its city limits after officials announced this month that they might explore regional options.
Monday, the City Council will meet in closed session to discuss the possible purchase of a portion of property in Costa Mesa that is slated for that city’s longterm shelter.
“We should be looking at our overall response to the homeless situation in a much more regional way,” Huntington Beach City Manager Oliver Chi said.
Chi will join the closed discussions about the Costa Mesa site at 3175 Airway Ave. as well as an additional property in Huntington Beach.
Other proposed sites have fallen through. Most recently, the city this month halted action toward putting a 35- to 60-bed homeless shelter at the former site of Al’s Woodcraft in the 17000 block of Beach Boulevard.
City officials said they might look to surrounding communities for a more regional solution. In the short term, Chi said, “we have to engage regionally and build a network for permanent housing options.”
“The solution is not to keep shuffling folks who are suffering from homelessness around but get those individuals into a more permanent housing situation,” he said.
On Tuesday, the Newport
Beach City Council will also meet in closed session to consider the Airway Avenue property as well as Costa Mesa’s current temporary shelter at Lighthouse Church of the Nazarene at 1885 Anaheim Ave. Newport has also had trouble finding a site for a homeless shelter.
During its regular meeting Monday, the Huntington Beach City Council is also scheduled to vote on whether to authorize the sale of a city-owned property in the 15000 block of Pipeline
Lane for $2.744 million.
The council in April authorized a $2.85-million purchase of that property to create a 75- to 90-bed homeless shelter. But the plan was dropped after a group of residents and area property and business owners sued, arguing the property could be used only for industrial purposes.