DC needs a downtown homeless shelter!

Mayor Fenty's office is continuing to dismantle beds at Franklin Shelter. Men are being evicted and some are ending up on the street, just outside Franklin Shelter. Please call the Mayor and your City Councilperson and tell them to stop dismantling beds and restore the original 300 beds ... hypothermia season is coming.   The Mayor has completely disregarded the will of the Council and of the District residents who rely on downtown shelter every night.

- Call or email the Mayor to express your outrage (mayor@dc.gov, 727-2980)
- Call or email the Council to let them know that the Mayor is disregarding their legislation.
- Come to an update/teach-in about how to proceed:  Sunday, Sept 28 at 2:00 pm.  In Franklin Park, 13th and K NW.
- Check www.franklinshelter.org for updated info!

-Click here for photos from Fenty shutting down the shelter on the morning of Sept. 26.

 More information:

In April of this year, the Mayor announced plans to close Franklin Shelter on October 1st.

Last week, the D.C. Council passed emergency legislation requiring the Mayor to certify to the Council that no fewer than 300 men have been placed into housing before the closure of Franklin Shelter could take place, and that Franklin continue its operations as a 300 person shelter in the meantime.  The legislation also requires the Mayor to provide the Council "with a report on any proposed closing of the Franklin Shelter that includes a description of the current capacity, current availability, and location of replacement shelter space, and the ability to seasonally increase capacity to reduce incidences of hypothermia among the homeless population prior to closing the Franklin Shelter." (Franklin Shelter Closing Requirements Emergency Act)

Most impressively, Councilmembers unanimously agreed that adequate shelter capacity is a priority for D.C. and expressed a growing mistrust of the Administration's lack of transparency in implementing its Housing First program and closing the last low-barrier downtown shelter.

But the fight to save Franklin has just begun.  Despite the Council's intent to stop the closing, the Department of Human Services [DHS] has continued reducing capacity at the shelter, which now stands at 139 beds (down from the original 300), and the Mayor shows no signs of changing course.  

We may need the DC Council to take even stronger action if the Administration refuses to change course.  This is your chance to let the Councilmembers know that a humane and inclusive city needs both affordable housing and an emergency shelter safety net, particularly downtown.

Tell the Council and DHS that:

    * Placing 300 men into housing today does not open up 300 shelter beds for those who become homeless tomorrow.   In 2007, 12,768 different individuals used 1,988 shelter beds in the District.  This means that every shelter bed served more than 6 different individuals each year.  While placing people in housing will open up some shelter space, the one-for-one ratio is not an accurate prediction of future demand and if followed, will lead to a severe shortage of beds.  

    * DC should not reduce shelter capacity before we can measure the effect of housing people who are homeless on the continuing demand for emergency shelter. The Mayor's Housing First program deserves full support, but even if successfully implemented by October 1st, it will not fully meet the demand for housing or emergency shelter. An effective system for addressing and ending homelessness has both adequate affordable housing and an emergency safety net to catch people who fall into bad times (just as an effective health care system includes emergency services, acute care, assisted living and preventative medicine).  

    * The downtown location is critical to many men who are homeless, especially during hypothermia season. Franklin Shelter is the only low barrier emergency shelter for men downtown. Many men stay at Franklin because they need to access jobs, services, transportation, and dining programs that are located downtown.  The location of Franklin is even more critical during the hypothermia season for men who would otherwise sleep outside.  A downtown location can mean the difference between life and death for District residents who are homeless.

    * We want to move away from warehousing the homeless, yet the Winter Plan calls for adding beds to the two largest shelters.   The current draft of the Winter Plan calls for increasing beds at the two largest shelters: 801E and CCNV drop-in center, by 100 total beds, which still won't make up for the loss of beds at Franklin and "Building 9" at DC General (had 100 beds last winter).  If the city truly wants to move away from warehousing the homeless, it doesn't make sense to close the one emergency shelter for men that serves the downtown and is the most likely to save lives, only to increase numbers at the most warehouse-like shelters in the system. Even with these 100 beds added to the largest shelters, the current draft of the Winter Plan falls far short of meeting the need.

Click here for photos from Friday morning's rally!

Thanks very much for your support.  If you'd like more information, please feel free to contact the Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless at (202) 328-5500.