Del Norte County expects to close escrow on its purchase of Coastal Inn & Suites by the end of November. Using state dollars, the county will start a permanent supportive housing program for the homeless. File photo: Jessica Cejnar

County supervisors on Tuesday approved a last step in the Department of Health and Human Service’s endeavor to turn Coastal Inn & Suites into permanent supportive housing program.

Four supervisors approved a budget transfer of nearly $2.8 million in Project HomeKey dollars, which is necessary to pay escrow and closing costs as part of the hotel purchase. According to DHHS Director Heather Snow, escrow will close at the end of the month.
District 1 Supervisor Roger Gitlin was absent at Tuesday’s special meeting, according to Snow’s secretary, Patrick Morning.

This decision comes about a month after supervisors gave DHHS the go-ahead to buy the 30-unit motel at 665 L Street in Crescent City using state Project HomeKey dollars. The purchase price was about $1.9 million.

At that Oct. 13 Board of Supervisors meeting, Snow said DHHS had been housing 43 adults and seven children at the motel through a similar state program, Project RoomKey.

Citing data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Snow said the number of people living at Coastal Inn & Suites as of Oct. 13 accounted for 27 percent of Del Norte County’s homeless population.

Snow also told supervisors that according to HUD, 224 Del Norte County residents were homeless in 2020.

The State of California notified counties in July that support was available for housing the homeless during the COVID-19 pandemic through Project HomeKey. These dollars would allow for the purchase of motels to house the homeless, though the money needed to be spent by Dec. 31 and the facility had to be occupied within 90 days.

Project HomeKey also required that the program counties created house at least 5 percent of the county’s homeless population.
DHHS’s proposed purchase of Coastal Inn & Suites for a permanent supportive housing program drew opposition from a handful of residents, including Gitlin, who participated in an Oct. 8 protest outside the motel.

They argued that the location on U.S. 101 was unsafe and would constitute blight since that’s the main route visitors take through Crescent City.

The endeavor also drew mixed support from the Crescent City Council, which sent a letter saying that while Councilors supported the program, they were disappointed at a lack of communication.

Documents:

• Nov. 24 Budget Transfer Staff Report

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