Measure E to provide $4.5 million to operate Elk Grove's year-round homeless shelter for three years
Mayor Bobbie Singh-Allen has directed the city to spend $4,578,137 over three years to operate the year-round shelter.
When Elk Grove Mayor Bobbie Singh-Allen convenes her city council meeting on Wednesday night, she and her four city councilmen will approve an expenditure to operate the city's first year-round homeless shelter.
Funded with revenues generated by the voter-approved Measure E sales tax increase, Mayor Singh-Allen will direct the city to spend $4,578,137 over three years with Roseville, Calif.-based The Gathering Inn (TGI) to operate the facility. Approved in 2022, Measure E is expected to generate about $23 million annually in discretionary revenue that Mayor Singh-Allen promised to use on social services like the homeless shelter.
The year-round homeless shelter significantly advances the city's foray into providing social services. Last November, the city opened its first homeless shelter in Old Town-Historic Downtown at a former drug store the city purchased that is currently being converted into a library.
Buoyed by the success of the facility operated by TGI, the city identified a facility on the grounds of the Calvary Christian Center on East Stockton Boulevard that could be leased for three years with an option for an extra year. Unlike the Old Town facility, this year-round shelter will offer more services for clients, like pet kennels.
When the city revealed the location several weeks ago, not surprisingly, nearby residents expressed displeasure on various social media platforms. To address those concerns, the city held two meetings at Calvary Christian Center to answer questions and tamp down opposition.
The city will incur other costs in addition to the $4.5 million over three years for TGI's operations. In the first year, that cost is $400,000 for lease and improvements and $150,000 for lease payments in years two and three.
The Wednesday city council meeting starts at 6 p.m.
