Last week, three churches opened their doors as warming centers when temperatures dropped below 15 degrees, causing the state to issue a Code Blue alert. The warming centers for those experiencing homelessness are set up at the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Provo Community Church and The Genesis Project. The churches offered their buildings for free to house unsheltered people during the cold nights.

In the 2023 Utah legislative session, House Bill 499, “Homeless Services Amendments,” was passed, requiring Utah, Davis and Salt Lake counties to form response plans for winter 2024, providing shelter seven nights a week from Oct. 15 through April 30 for those experiencing homelessness. It also allowed counties and organizations to provide shelter during Code Blue alerts in 2023 and going forward, as long as the facilities are compliant with fire and safety codes.

The bill requires a task force to be formed to create the winter response plan. In addition to providing shelter seven nights a week, the plan also must detail what will happen during a Code Blue event. “The addition of warming centers to our winter response plan meets the State ‘Code Blue’ requirement while illustrating an innovative approach to protecting our most vulnerable populations, and our community,” Utah County Commissioner Brandon Gordon stated in a press release about the task force.

The Utah County Winter Response Task Force was created and held its first meeting Dec. 11. At the body’s meeting last Wednesday, Gordon was elected chair of the task force and Isaac Paxman, deputy mayor of Provo, was elected as vice chair.

They will now meet twice a month, and while Gordon said it will be a “heavy lift” to get that many mayors and community leaders together so often, he also said they are committed to creating the plan and having the required formal submission to the state by the deadline of Aug. 1.

According to the press release, “During a state-issued ‘Code Blue’ designation, the warming centers will open as short-term shelter for singles and couples. Families with minor children, seniors 65 years and older, and very vulnerable are sheltered in local hotels through Community Action (Services and Food Bank).”

The Mountainland Continuum of Care, made up of homeless service agencies, has been working for months with the local churches to create these warming centers. A warming center is a designated location that provides a warm place to sleep for those experiencing homelessness. After a few bumps along the road, including fire code issues, the warming centers opened last week.

The Continuum of Care is part of the task force, and project coordinator Heather Hogue explained that while the group began the work of creating warming centers before the task force was created, “One of the first things the task force did after being formed was to help work through challenges like fire code. We needed them to formalize our work with the churches.”

Now, the task force is very involved in the warming centers and plans to utilize them in the winter response plan for next year. Gordon said they are also discussing other options to provide additional shelter during the cold winter nights.

This winter, the warming centers are open only for Code Blue nights and can remain open up to seven nights after a Code Blue alert is issued. Next winter, they are expected to be open seven nights a week. The churches were open last week, Sunday through Thursday, and will be open this week on Wednesday and Thursday to help with the annual Point-in-Time count, Hogue explained.

According to the press release, volunteers age 18 or older are needed to help run the warming centers, though Hogue said they have enough volunteers this week. Members of the community can sign up at https://forms.gle/rxCe2gJ61Hv3TGxk9.

Hogue volunteered at the warming centers last week and told the Daily Herald, “They were so quiet, just the sound of snoring. Our lowest night was 15 people. Our highest was 35. … It was really lovely this week. Very peaceful.”

Utah County Commissioner Tom Sakievich was originally the head of the task force, but as he is not seeking reelection in 2024, Gordon is taking over many of his responsibilities, including the task force.

The task force is made up of voting and nonvoting members. The voting members will be part of the site selection for the warming centers or other types of temporary shelters for next year’s winter response plan.

In addition to Gordon and Paxman, the voting members include Cedar Hills Mayor Denise Anderson, Vineyard Mayor Julie Fullmer, Lehi Mayor Mark Johnson, Spanish Fork Mayor Mike Mendenhall and Springville Mayor Matt Packard.

The nonvoting members include Wayne Niederhauser, state homelessness coordinator; Molly Wheeler, Utah League of Cities and Towns; Steve Hunter, Utah Association of Counties; Hogue, United Way; Karen McCandless, Community Action Services and Food Bank; and Kena Mathews, Community Action Services and Food Bank; plus Fred Sheehan of Wasatch Behavioral Health and Brendon Balckburn, who both have experienced homelessness.

Gordon said Niederhauser attending each of their meetings will be a “huge asset” to the task force and creating the plan.

Niederhauser, quoted in the press release, said: “We deeply value (Utah County’s) spirit of collaboration within the (statewide) collective effort of addressing homelessness. Working together has proven to be the cornerstone of critical resolve, and we extend our sincere appreciation to all those involved in this important effort.”

It was discussed at the first task force meeting that if the body does not create the winter response plan, the State Office of Homeless Services could take charge and determine the action plan. This means the state could potentially put a homeless shelter in Utah County if the task force does not fulfill the plan.

Gordon explained the goal is to find and address the root cause of homelessness, rather than create a homeless shelter. Task force members are exploring options such as microshelters, he said, and are finding ways to address issues such as mental health, substance abuse, foster care, storage for belongings and more.

Although the task force was formed to create a winter response plan, the group will continue working to address the root issues of homelessness after the plan is created. Although they will likely meet less often, they will still meet to discuss key issues in the homeless community and how to address them, Gordon explained. “In my opinion, the only way it would go away is if homelessness went away,” he said, adding that is unlikely.

Troy Beebe, Provo police chief, stated in the press release, “The true story behind homelessness is much more complex than a headline, with safety always a top concern. The warming centers provide a safe, short-term solution, with wraparound services designed for individualized long-term help.”

Currently, the warming centers are all located in Provo, but business leaders in Provo are hoping that will change in next year’s winter response plan. Downtown Provo Inc., the business alliance for downtown Provo, sent a letter addressed to the task force and elected leaders throughout Utah Valley to offer suggestions for the winter response plan and ask that warming centers be located in other areas of the county as well.

The letter states, “We applaud Provo City, local non-profits, churches, and others for their track record of success in truly helping people without fostering a community of street dwellers, the likes of which can cause customers and businesses to flee.”

It continued, “We raise our voice in favor of caution in focusing too many evening-stay resources for the homeless in or near downtown Provo. In our view, this small geographical area has done far more than its share for far too long. … Most urgently, we ask for other cities to take one night a week of the planned warming shelters that are anticipated to be a part of the legislatively required ‘Winter Response Plan.’ … We know that together, cities in Utah County can work on these solutions to show the state what real successful resources look like, without the great cost to the community that we have seen in other places.”

Hogue explained that the majority of Utah County’s homeless population resides in Provo, Orem and Springville. Many of Utah County’s homelessness resources are provided in Provo, meaning transportation to and from these warming centers, especially if they are in northern parts of the county, would need to be arranged. During the first task force meeting, Hogue discussed the need for transportation and exit strategies for those using the warming centers but not staying in the area of the center.

The proposed plan for transportation is that those who stay at the warming centers “will receive either a one-day bus pass to another destination or if they’re receiving services in Utah County, a monthly bus pass will be provided to avoid loitering in the area, have transportation to/from work and to/from the location of resources,” the minutes for the meeting state.

Regarding Provo residents not wanting all homeless services in their city, Gordon said, “I could see how frustrating that might be for Provo and Salt Lake, for example. That’s why the tents are popping up is because that population tends to gather and be together and try and find resources. So it’s really kind of a unique thing as we’re trying to wrestle with that.”

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