WATSONVILLE — Development of a 34-unit “tiny home village” to temporarily house people living along the Pajaro River levee is expected to begin this summer and conclude by year’s end.
The Recurso de Fuerza Village project, to be located at 5 Cherry Court on property owned by Westview Presbyterian Church, will be funded for its first two years through a nearly $8 million state encampment resolution grant that was jointly awarded in June to Monterey and Santa Cruz counties. The shelter project, initially tailored to those living along more than 3 miles of riverbed ahead of a major Pajaro River levee rebuild project, would become Santa Cruz County’s responsibility after the grant’s conclusion, according to agreements between the jurisdictions.
On Tuesday morning, the Monterey County Board of Supervisors approved a contract with nonprofit developer DignityMoves and the Coalition of Homeless Services Providers was given a nearly three-year contract to identify and contract with a Santa Cruz County nonprofit to operate the shelter. That same evening, the Watsonville City Council heard a presentation on the project from Monterey County Homeless Services Director Roxanne Wilson. The shelter program was designed, the City Council was told, to “provide a pathway to safe, permanent housing for encampment occupants and their pets.”
“So, this is a little bit different than a traditional emergency shelter,” Wilson said in Watsonville. “It is an emergency shelter with supportive services layered on top of that, with the intention of housing people.”
Residents of the temporary housing will have supportive services, 24-hour staffing, security and cameras, a pet area, housing navigation services and other amenities, according to the Watsonville presentation. Officials also were expected to create a mandatory “good neighbor policy” to bridge the gap between residents and businesses nearby.
Monterey County Board of Supervisors also heard from Wilson earlier in the day. She told the board that, due to unexpected FEMA-required construction costs needed to safely elevate the village structures above Watsonville’s downtown flood plain, about $1 million of the funding set aside for services and operations would be moved into capital development. The additional cost, she said, would translate to a funding shortfall in the shelter’s second year that officials in both counties were looking to fill.
Chairman Supervisor Glenn Church aired concerns about the significant amount of funding used to make a temporary site safer from flooding than elsewhere in the city, when the money could be used for significant benefit elsewhere. Supervisor Wendy Root Askew said she hoped the project, including its cross-county partnership, could serve as a model for other communities.
While Monterey County is the primary grant recipient, the shelter program is being located in Watsonville, according to Wilson, because there were no available sites in the immediate area on the Monterey County side of the river.
Remaining pre-development steps include DignityMoves’ business license application with Watsonville, a management operation plan with the city and negotiations with a service provider, Wilson said.
“We are working really hard to try to get this done before the next rain season,” Wilsons said.