Council approves $15M purchase of the Salvation Army shelter property

The former Salvation Army Downtown Shelter will continue to serve people without homes for years to come, following City Council’s decision to purchase the property for $15 million. The purchase includes the 130-bed shelter on Eighth Street and a retail storefront and parking lot on the 700 block of Red River Street.

The purchase removes the long-uncertain future of the building, which was closed unexpectedly by the Salvation Army early this year. That closure caused a sudden disruption in the number of shelter beds available for women, transgender people and those with disabilities who are served there.

The city stepped in to keep it open through early spring, and City Council in June approved a 12-month lease that allowed time to negotiate the purchase, which was unanimously approved on consent.

Mayor Kirk Watson said the closure, which took place less than a month after he took office, “made a bad situation much worse” since it substantially reduced the 1,000 shelter beds needed every night to serve people experiencing homelessness.

Via email, Watson told the Austin Monitor he wants to use the shelter mostly as it had been for the short term while starting discussions on the future of the property.

“Since the City now owns almost the entire block, I think the Council, homeless response stakeholders, and the community will need to have a larger and longer discussion about the future of this block, but today I am going to focus on getting this building open, making sure there are enough services available, and inviting many of our unhoused neighbors to come inside,” he wrote. “Owning the building gives the City better control over its use, the length of time we use it for this purpose, and how taxpayers ultimately benefit by owning 90 percent of this valuable downtown block.”

Since June, California-based Urban Alchemy has been the contracted manager of the shelter, which now can help up to 150 people at a time. Thursday’s Council vote preserves that service agreement as well.

Watson noted that so far this year, the city has received $65 million from the state for shelters and housing stabilization while increasing capacity at the Northbridge and Southbridge shelters working to convert the Marshalling Yard property into a 300-person-capacity shelter.

The purchase decision received no discussion on the dais.

During public comment, Bill Brice, senior vice president of investor relations for the Downtown Austin Alliance, asked for a delay on the vote because he said downtown business owners are uncertain that the purchase is the best move for the city and the city’s unhoused population.

“Thirteen months ago, we began to see positive change in block 85 and the surrounding area. We began to realize what this area could be, after seeing it blighted for nearly two decades. We began to have hope for the possibility of revitalizing this important part of downtown while better serving the needs of people experiencing homelessness,” he said. “The community deserves assurance that the decisions we make – including the large investments to purchase, repair and operate this property – are without a doubt the highest and best use of tax dollars and that social services are designed for the future, not the past. You owe it to your constituents – and especially those experiencing homelessness – to make the best informed, cost-effective decisions to maximize investments to address homelessness and to ensure that the decisions you make help to improve the vitality of downtown.”

Brice was unavailable after the meeting to clarify what the DAA hopes to see on the property.

David Gray, the city’s interim homeless strategy officer, said the purchase was a needed move to serve the city’s homeless population.

“The acquisition of the former downtown Salvation Army shelter is not just adding beds, it’s also extending our arms to embrace those in need,” he said in a prepared statement. “Maintaining this shelter is a testament to our shared responsibility and commitment of building a city where no one is left without a home or hope.”

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Posted In: City Council, District 9