Evan Chandler
Roughly four months after the launch of the City of Santa Fe’s Safe Outdoor Spaces pilot program, city officials are looking to expand services.
The City Council and Mayor Alan Webber approved a plan in March 2023 to purchase 25 pallet homes it intended to utilize for SOS sites with the help of up to $1 million from the American Rescue Plan Act. City officials unanimously approved contracts to establish and operate the first site in December 2023. Since April, Christ Lutheran Church has hosted 10 pallet shelters—housing 11 individuals and five pets—that include electricity, heating and cooling which The Life Link helps operate and connects people to additional services. Those agreements totaled $828,368.
The new Request for Qualifications seeks privately-owned properties to host new pallet shelter sites. The site could contain up to 50 standalone structures and, like the pilot project, will also include 24/7 oversight and on-site support services for individuals and/or couples staying there.
City of Santa Fe Youth and Family Services Department Program Manager Kristen Woods tells SFR it is “really clear” that the city needs more solutions to address homelessness.
“It’s a huge priority for the city, so I think just hands down, we need more pallet shelters,” Woods says. “Having more non-congregate shelter options is a really good thing for our community.”
The city currently has 29 pallet shelters in storage, Woods notes. However, that number could soon change if the City Council and Mayor Alan Webber approve a budget amendment resolution that proposes dedicating $812,325 to fund the purchase and installation of additional pallet shelters and hygiene and office units. That spending forms part of one-time investments Webber announced during his annual State of City address. Woods adds the 29 shelters in storage are “just not going to be enough to address the issue.”
District 4 City Councilor Jamie Cassutt, a cosponsor of the original resolution to establish the SOS sites, tells SFR she’s “really excited that there is the confidence in the individuals on the ground” to expand the efforts.
“For me, seeing it come to fruition to continue forward is very exciting, as I frequently say, with anything homelessness or housing related, we know that there is not going to be a one size fits all, or one single solution that’s going to be the silver bullet that fixes it, but that’s why we have to keep pursuing projects like the Safe Outdoor Spaces,” Cassutt says. “It is one key piece of the puzzle as part of that housing spectrum that we need to develop that’s going to help different individuals so that we can get them off the streets, we can hopefully get them into a place where they are able to live independently, find jobs and really be productive members of society and really live up to their potential.”
However, she adds that “one of the biggest challenges” will be getting organizations that are interested in hosting the space and providing support services. “That’s always a really big issue,” Cassutt says.
Whether interest will surface from prospective host sites remains to be seen. Few potential partners applied to participate in the pilot program—just one host site and two operators responded to the city’s initial search. In January, interest from several shelter leaders appeared minimal.
Webber tells SFR he doesn’t anticipate issues, but notes if there are, there are sites the city owns that “could be candidates” for the expansion effort.
“I think once there was proof of concept that this worked and it was not going to be a deterrent to your neighbors or to your church ground, and in fact, it’s a good thing as a congregation, I think we’ll have more people who want to participate,” Webber says.
The deadline for RFQs is Aug. 30. The timeline for the expansion after that depends on the applicant sites and what’s going on at the city at that time, Woods notes.
“We’re hoping to be able to start selecting sites and moving towards doing the work as quickly as possible,” she says. “How long a contract will take and how long will it take to get all those things in order? It could be three to six months, but it just depends.”
