Homeless day center opens in Watsonville
To help combat homelessness, the first-ever day services center is opening up in Watsonville. It will be providing help that officials say has been lacking in that area of Santa Cruz County.
The services center is right off of Grant Street close to the Police Department.
Officials say there has been more focus on homeless services in the north part of the county, but they’re trying to broaden it.
“The city has identified providing homeless services as one of the key issues that we have to address and i think working with the salvation army and different community groups, this is a good beginning,” says Watsonville City Council Member Felipe Hernandez.
Complete with washing machines, showers, lockers to store important belongings, a mailbox and computers with internet access, Grant street is the new home to the center.
“You can’t get a job, if you can’t wash your clothes. You can’t keep a job if you can’t stay clean and get a shower. And even to go get assistance of any sort you need a real address. So if you can;t get those things than you’re kind of stuck there. So what we realized a couple years ago is south county needed a place like that with all of those services in one building,” says Salvation Army Cpt. Harold Laubach.
They are services people like Harley, say are hard to find.
“We certainly have a lack, not only of services in general, but specific ones.”
He’s been living in Watsonville without a home for about three years. The new center is something he says he will take advantage of.
“The services that are being offered here at salvation army, it’ll improve things for a lot of people. I appreciate it. I will be using the showers specifically.”
Officials say the center is not only a place for the homeless to come and clean up or hang out, but a place to take steps in a new direction.
“You have to give them a way out. You have to give them a road to recovery, a way to find housing, a way to find treatment if it’s physical treatment or mental health treatment and you have to find a way to get employment and all these different things like that . So we’ve done all those things with the programs inside including partnering with the county.”
The center is now officially open for services.
For now it is open Monday-Friday from 9-5.
Come November it will also serve as a winter shelter with overnight services seven days a week.
