LONGMONT — Every day in the winter, 10 people from Longmont obtain a free bus pass from the OUR Center and travel to Boulder for the night at the shelter there.
On especially cold nights, Agape Family Services operates an overnight warming center in one of four Longmont churches. Emergency sheltering options also are available for families and for those affected by domestic violence. But for the most part, people with no home in Longmont spend winter nights in the Boulder shelter, an Agape warming center, a car or a tent — or even outside.
Some sectors of the Longmont community think it makes sense to open a homeless shelter in Longmont. Others believe that limited resources should be put to other uses. The question of whether Longmont needs a homeless shelter of its own will come under scrutiny in 2016, with a $50,000 study on Longmont’s services for the homeless due in June.
The city of Longmont pays $50,000 annually to the Boulder Shelter for the Homeless. In exchange, the shelter reserves 10 beds for people who come from Longmont.
The 10 spots are available on a first-come-first-serve basis. OUR Center executive director Edwina Salazar said that on colder days, the spots usually are gone by midmorning.
Agape executive director Paula Saxon said homeless people who have temporary work in Longmont during the day may find obtaining a warm bed at the shelter difficult.
“We really appreciate the services that the Boulder shelter offers, and they do an excellent job. … However, we have Longmont residents who live and work here, and it’s not feasible for them to try to get to Boulder,” Saxon said.
The Boulder County 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness calls for using the limited dollars for homelessness on permanent supportive housing, not emergency sheltering.
Boulder Shelter for the Homeless executive director Greg Harms, who runs the Boulder shelter, said the decision between the two is a tough one, but it has largely already been made as homeless service providers move more and more away from providing temporary emergency shelter.
