San Jose Builds First Community Of Tiny Homes For The Homeless
January 4, 2021
source: The Mercury News via Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group
In the city where I live, there is a huge homelessness problem. With few social services and no homeless shelter for an hour, our city’s homeless population has very few options. Even large cities with multiple shelters have difficulties housing all the people in need of a place to stay. Not to mention, shelters are also no stranger to theft and violence among residents, forcing many people to sleep on the streets as a “safer” alternative.
Fortunately, some cities are beginning to develop creative options for housing their homeless population. San Jose, California recently opened the doors to a community of 40 tiny homes designed to provide shelter for the homeless. Each tiny home is 80-square-feet and features a single bed, desk, and shelves. Each home is also equipped with a heater and air conditioner.
In San Jose, a staggering 6,000 people are forced to sleep on the streets, in shelters, or in their cars due to a severe lack of affordable housing in the area. “We hope that this will provide the model for everyone being able to see that we can make this work in a community and that housing for our homeless neighbors can be a great asset for the surrounding community,” said Mayor Sam Liccardo.
Each tiny home cost around $6,500 to build, with the entire project costing just over $2 million. In addition to the tiny homes, the community also features shared washrooms, a kitchen space, laundry facilities, common living areas with computers, internet access, job boards, and a 24/7 security guard who sits in a patrol station near the front gate of the community.
Although these tiny homes are meant to be transitional housing, San Jose joins other cities including Denver, Seattle, and Oakland in providing their city’s homeless residents with a safe and secure place to live and sleep, as they work towards finding stable employment and a more permanent living situation. Our hats go off to San Jose for launching this incredible project, and we can only hope more cities follow suit in future years.
h/t The Mercury News – thanks for covering this important story!