As part of its continued efforts to reduce homelessness, the City of San Diego is planning to fund operations at a new 210-bed facility in Downtown, pending approval. Tomorrow, Feb. 14, the San Diego Housing Commission’s (SDHC) Board of Commissioners will vote on a proposed agreement with Catholic Charities, Diocese of San Diego, to operate the shelter.

The shelter proposal comes just a few months after the City and SDHC unveiled a Short-Term Action Plan that added 263 beds across three new facilities. At the request of the San Diego City Council, the Short-Term Action Plan addressed the loss of shelter beds from the former Golden Hall shelter facility, which at the time of the closure had around 90 individuals enrolled, all of whom were transferred to new facilities.

Rachel’s Promise, a 40-bed shelter in Downtown also operated by Catholic Charities, is anticipated to close this June due to building redevelopment plans. The shelter proposal announced this week will allow residents from Rachel’s Promise to be transferred to the new location while expanding the number of people served. The 210-bed facility would have a similar name, proposed as the Rachel’s Promise Center for Women and Children.

“With this new shelter, we’re expanding our capacity to get more people off the street and connected to care,” said Mayor Todd Gloria. “This builds on the work we’ve already done over the past four years to more than double shelter options and help nearly 5,000 people move into housing.”  

Services for shelter residents will include meals, clothing, access to showers, laundry, housing-focused case management, care coordination, referrals and support for enrollment in healthcare resources, individual therapy, life skills classes and assistance applying for public benefits.

Currently, the City funds approximately 1,630 traditional shelter beds across nearly two dozen programs, up to 770 tent spaces in the Safe Sleeping Program, and 210 spaces for vehicles in the Safe Parking Program with more than a dozen RV trailers specifically for family use. This spring, the City will nearly double capacity of the Safe Parking Program with an overnight-only facility expected to open off Harbor Drive near the San Diego Airport.

“We appreciate the work of our colleagues at the San Diego Housing Commission and Catholic Charities for putting together this proposal to deliver more options for individuals to work to end their homelessness, especially when it comes to families,” said Sarah Jarman, director of the City’s Homelessness Strategies and Solutions Department. “We will continue to collaborate with the City Council, San Diego Housing Commission, and other stakeholders to ensure our response to address homelessness remains robust in the short and long-term.”

Earlier this week, City staff from the Homelessness Strategies and Solutions Department (HSSD) presented several potential long-term shelter sites to the City Council for their consideration. Councilmembers asked staff to analyze financing and costs to convert a privately owned facility on Second Avenue and to explore increasing bed availability at the shelter program on the campus of Veterans Village of San Diego.

To help inform decisions and future shelter site planning, HSSD and SDHC staff have been conducting listening sessions since late last year with homelessness service providers and people with lived experience, including those currently staying in City-funded shelters. Those conversations have helped inform decision making, with the proposed 210-bed facility offering congregate, semi-congregate and non-congregate options for bed and room layouts.

If approved Friday by the SDHC Board of Commissioners, the City Council would have the opportunity to review the proposal as the Housing Authority of the City of San Diego.

To learn more about the City’s shelter system, read the Comprehensive Shelter Strategy updated in July 2024 on the Homelessness Strategies and Solutions webpage.