City Of Kansas City: KCMO Opens Warming Centers On Saturday

Kansas City MO

03 January, 2022

4:19 AM

Description

Press release from the City of Kansas City: December 31, 2021 Kansas City plans to open warming centers on Saturday as part of the City's new Extreme Weather Plan to support the unhoused community. Gregg/Klice, Westport Roanoke, and Garrison Community Centers will be open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. this weekend (these locations may change during other cold weather events). The centers are for people to keep warm, but food and beverages will not be provided. The specific locations are as follows: Gregg/Klice, 1600 E. 17th Terrace Westport Roanoke, 3601 Roanoke Rd. Garrison, 1124 E. 5th St. Kansas City's Extreme Weather plan has been activated in order to ensure everyone in Kansas City has a warm and dry place to sleep at night. The plan activates when the daytime high is below 32 degrees, or the overnight low is less than 20 degrees, and includes the following steps: KCMO Emergency Operations Center opens a hotline to coordinate shelter bed availability. Ride KC offers free bus rides to shelters, and people can warm up on the heated buses. When shelters are full, the City will open one or two temporary overflow locations, based on need. The City also has an online dashboard to track shelter bed availability that's active on KCMO.gov. The dashboard is updated daily with data shared by all service providers. This dashboard can be used by shelters, community groups, street outreach workers, and others to find available beds more quickly for those who need a place to stay overnight during winter weather. The dashboard was created as part of the City's new plan to increase coordination of services for the unhoused. It was built by staff in the Data KC Office at no extra cost to the city. Those who need a place to sleep should contact one of the established shelters that provide services for houseless persons. The City is also partnering with City Union Mission to create a centralized donation drop-off location at 700 East 8th Street, KCMO. Hours: Mon-Fri 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sat 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. Needed supplies (preferred size is L and XL in men's and women's sizes): New thermal tops & bottoms New sweatshirts & sweatpants New socks New shoes/boots New face coverings New scarves Hand & foot warmers New sleeping bags/blankets, mylar blankets Like New: Tents, coats, gloves, stocking hats The City's long-term focus to better serve the homeless community is to create more permanent supportive housing and to provide a better response with more resources to those in need. This includes: Allocating $12.5 million to the City's first-ever affordable housing trust fund that will incentivize the creation of affordable housing units and other housing options within larger otherwise market-rate multifamily development projects Distributing about $16 million in emergency rental assistance funds to nearly 4,000 households in Kansas City. With community input, developing a "Vision for Housing" that outlines the plan to create 10,000 new affordable housing units by 2027 Establishing a new Housing and Community Development Department with the City's first employees dedicated to homelessness prevention and support, tenant advocacy, and affordable housing creation and preservation Converting the nearly 3,000 vacant lots and homes owned by the City's Land Bank into affordable housing (a new RFP will be released for this shortly) Turning two former hotels into permanent supportive housing and emergency transitional housing for those experiencing homelessness. The first project has been approved by the City Council, the other is in development. Constructing affordable housing on city-owned property in creative ways, such as the plan to incorporate affordable housing units into the reconstruction of the Barney Allis Parking Plaza The City's contractor, KC Pet Project's Animal Services, is also encouraging people to take extra steps to keep pets safe over the next few days: Have a collar and identification tag on your pet at all times, and if they are microchipped, make sure your information is up-to-date. With winter weather expected, make sure your pet has a safe place to be away from the elements (good shelter from the storm, door on a dog house opening away from the wind, straw or bedding in the house). If you can, bring your pet inside. If inside is unfamiliar to your pet, have a crate or kennel in the home or secure them in a room. If your pet becomes lost, please come to the shelter to see if your pet is there. Find information on Lost and Found pet resources. New Year's Eve can bring a lot of activity with it, like people coming over, fireworks, loud noises, and more. If your pet is scared, put them in a quiet room and play white noise, like a TV or radio to help keep them calm. Give them something to keep busy with like a puzzle game, bone, toys, etc. Media can contact Maggie Green, Media Relations Manager, at 816-379-6562. This press release was produced by the City of Kansas City. The views expressed here are the author's own.