Morro Bay wants grant funds to address homeless encampment

With concerns about a homeless encampment along Quintana Road and Highway 1, the Morro Bay City Council expressed its support for San Luis Obispo (SLO) County to apply for a $5 million grant from the California Encampment Resolution Funding Program. 

The grant aims to fund the construction of transitional housing, facilitating the transition of individuals from the encampment to permanent housing.

The encampment's location in a drainage area adjacent to commercial establishments poses environmental, safety, and neighborhood concerns. The accumulation of trash and debris resulting from the encampment has led to a significant increase in service calls to the Morro Bay Police and Public Works departments. 

Morro Bay's interim City Manager, Greg Carpenter, wrote a letter to county officials emphasizing the safety issues, particularly in relation to the heavy rainfall experienced earlier in the year.

If the grant is approved, the county will collaborate with the city to construct temporary housing. The county intends to establish a temporary supportive housing campus similar to the successful Grover Beach Cabins-for-Change program. 

While the county will be responsible for managing the funds, the city will work in conjunction with the county to appoint an official who will oversee the project and ensure the availability of the designated property for the housing campus. The county is in negotiations with property owner Habib Tabrizi to secure the site, with plans to develop 10 to 20 housing units.

The Morro Bay encampment is one of several eligible for funding across SLO County, with other cities like Paso Robles expressing support for grant applications to address similar encampments, such as the one in the Salinas Riverbed. 

Morro Bay hopes that collaborating with the county will lead to long-term success in addressing the issue of individuals residing in drainage ditches and facilitate their transition to more sustainable housing.

The city supports the proposal to conduct outreach to the individuals living in the encampment with the goal of helping them transition to permanent housing. Carpenter emphasized that the grant would significantly contribute to the development of shelter units and address the challenges posed by the encampment. Overall, Morro Bay's efforts aim to improve the living conditions of individuals at the Highway 1 homeless encampment and provide them with opportunities for stable housing.