LAKE COUNTY >> The Lake County Planning Commission approved a Major Use Permit for the Seventh Day Adventist Church to be used as a warming shelter during the winter season.
This will allow the church to host 24 overnight guests between December and March to help those in need to get out of the cold. The church has operated as a shelter before, but under a Temporary Emergency Permit and not a Major Use one.
The church also made itself available to those who needed a place to stay during county emergencies.
That the church provided aid for dozens each day when it first operated showed the need for a warming center in the community. But residents around the church remain concerned about trespassing and public safety. Two years ago, a confrontation between a homeowner and man using the shelter led to a stabbing.
Although that was the only serious incident, Dawn Hoffman, a homeowner across the street from the church, said her daughter is afraid to play outside because of the homeless people. Her husband was stabbed in the encounter.
“The first year the shelter was opened there were several incidents that caused me to feel concerned that the shelter would impact the safety of my family,” Hoffman said. “We don’t have a problem with the church. We do have a problem with this group of people not taking the responsibility and the accountability for who’s on their property.”
Reverend Shannon Kimball-Auth, who is the applicant for the permit, said they will update some of the conditions to help prevent some of the problems.
“The security guard has a cellphone on him at all times and it is not part of our policy to alert the community to that phone number, but I think it’s an excellent idea and we will do it next time,” Kimball-Auth said.
On site, they have not had any issues with homeless people in regards to fighting or noise, nor have they received any notice of concerns from the public. Although they will operate at hosting 24 people for the permit, they will sometimes have to accommodate for more if there is an emergency and they are asked to do so by the city our county Kimball-Auth said.
They also plan to have a meeting before and after with the locals about the program to resolve any issues they might have or answer any questions she added. This is to bring communication to both sides and give a better understanding of what is outside of the church’s jurisdiction.
District 4 Supervisor Tina Scott said she has volunteered at the shelter this past winter and brought her kids to help and never came across any issues with those who stayed.
“This warming center is needed in Lake County and it is being run by organized people that are passionate about what they’re doing and they do it for one reason because it’s the right thing to do,” Scott said.
Volunteering at the church last year has helped her grow as a person Scott said. Before she would not have even thought about approaching a homeless person and today she finds herself checking in on some of the guests who stayed there this past winter.
Now that the Planning Commission has given their approval for the Major Use Permit, it will now be brought to the Board of Supervisors and they will make a decision to grant or the permit or not.
