Former student dorm could become a shelter for homeless residents
City approves leasing building through Sept. 30
The city of Oakland plans to take over a vacant former student dormitory near Lake Merritt to shelter homeless people during the pandemic.
The City Council passed a resolution Tuesday to allow the city administrator to lease the building at 2332 Harrison St. at least until Sept. 30 to provide emergency shelter for people experiencing homelessness who are most at risk of being sickened by COVID-19.
The building is the Lake Merritt Lodge, a one-time hotel and YWCA built in 1929.
In 2013, entrepreneur Mahnaz Khazen bought the lodge and transformed the six-story building into a dormitory it leased to the Hult International Business School for several years.
Last summer, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors voted to buy the building to use it to house homeless residents, but that deal fell apart, The Oaklandside reported in August.
The city’s plan now is to lease the building’s 92 rooms at a maximum daily rate of $132 per room for an occupant and $50 for each additional occupant. It’s made possible, city staffers say, because of a new directive by President Biden’s administration that such programs are eligible for 100% reimbursement through federal funds at least until the end of September.
The city could have an opportunity to buy the building if state funding becomes available for Project Homekey, California’s program that allows cities to use COVID-19 money to buy buildings such as hotels and dormitories to house unsheltered residents.
To qualify to be housed in the building under the city’s federally funded rental agreement, however, people must have certain risk factors such as cancer, kidney disease, heart disease, obesity or pregnancy or be over the age of 65, among other conditions, according to a city memo. Such factors increase people’s likelihood of being sickened by COVID-19, public health officials say.
Under the city’s resolution, the city administrator will contract with a homeless services provider for basic operations, including 24-hour shelter counselors and security, as well as a shelter manager.
To encourage people to isolate as the pandemic continues, building residents also would have meals brought to them three times per day, have twice-weekly housekeeping and have access to free laundry, internet and some parking. It also would allow pets, although it would require pet owners to pay a damage deposit.
According to a memo included in the City Council agenda documents, city staffers estimate it will take about a month to move clients into the hotel and hire employees.
The estimated cost will be about $656,000 per month, a total of $3.75 million for the six months. If more federal funding becomes available after September, the city administrator is authorized to continue the program for a total of 12 months, although City Council members expressed hope that the plan to purchase the building will come together.
The move comes as many city residents continue to struggle to afford housing — a crisis that has become even more urgent over the course of the pandemic.
During Alameda County’s survey of homelessness on a single night in January 2019, outreach workers counted more than 4,000 people experiencing homelessness in Oakland, according to city memos, which is a 47% increase from 2017 in total homelessness in the city. About 79% of them live outdoors in tents or cars, representing a 63% increase in what staff considers “unsheltered” homelessness since 2017.
City and county officials expect the numbers to be even higher this year.
Homelessness also affects Black residents at a disproportionate rate. According to the county’s survey, 70% of people experiencing homelessness in Oakland identify as Black or African American, despite Black residents making up only 24% of the general population.