More than a bed, Rochester's warming center aims to be a bridge to a better future
With temperatures dropping, an increasing number of individuals experiencing homelessness have again begun to take up shelter in Rochester’s downtown skyway system.
Their presence is visible to anyone walking through the tunnels. Blow-up mattresses and sleeping bags dot several of the main corridors that connect the Mayo Clinic campus with businesses, hotels, and parking ramps.
Soon, however, a new city ordinance will take effect prohibiting these individuals from using the skyways for overnight shelter.
That policy will go hand-in-hand with the opening of a new warming shelter, to be located in a strip mall on the south end of downtown.
Local officials say the goal is not to push out the homeless, but to offer them a better option. Already, local law enforcement has begun notifying individuals in the skyways about the new rules and nearby shelter.
“This is not meant to be punitive,” Rochester Mayor Kim Norton said during a news conference on Tuesday. “This is meant to be helpful.”
The Rochester Community Warming Center, 200 Fourth Street Southeast, is the result of a 10-month collaborative effort to address the needs of the city’s increasingly-visible homeless population. Olmsted County, the City of Rochester, and Mayo Clinic have all put up funds to support the shelter.
The space, set to open on December 15, will provide beds for up to 30-40 individuals on any given night. Those guests will be offered food, a shower, and the opportunity to do their laundry. Trained staff will also work with guests to try and find them a more permanent housing solution.
“It’s not just a place for people to come and have a place that’s warm to sleep at night,” said Mary Alessio, director of advancement for Catholic Charities of Southern Minnesota, which will operate the shelter. “It’s something to really go beyond that — to really connect them so their futures are brighter and so they have opportunities to reach their full potential.”
The warming center will be open nightly — seven days a week, including holidays — through March to anyone in need. Guests will be required to arrive between 9 and 10 p.m. and then be out the next day by 7 a.m.
According to Tom Parlin, the program supervisor with Catholic Charities, the space will operate as a “low-bar shelter,” meaning that other than demonstrating good behavior, there will be no barrier for entry.
“We don’t require a lot of things from them to come and use the shelter,” said Parlin. “We don’t take a breathalyzer test. We won’t check their IDs.”
Dave Dunn, the housing director for Olmsted County, described the facility as a place of last resort for individuals experiencing homelessness.
While the adult center addresses an immediate concern, Dunn said, the long-term goal is for the community to come together so people won’t need to use it to begin with. Already, he said, that work in under way.
“We’ve had 11 people in the last week and a half who have been housed, simply by [making] connections,” said Dunn.
However, in the event that the number of individuals seeking shelter goes beyond the capacity of the center, there is a contingency plan in place.
“If we go beyond 40, then what we will be doing is having an off-site facility where we will have a place that will be more of a temporary emergency shelter,” Dunn said during Tuesday’s news conference.
In addition to the center coordinator, Tricia Kramer, three other part-time staffers have been brought on by Catholic Charities. Together, they will work with an army of volunteers to operate the facility.
[Want to help? About 200 volunteers are needed. Shifts are flexible. You can visit this link to learn more about volunteering, or to make a donation.]
Sean Baker is a Rochester journalist and the founder of Med City Beat.
