‘Come here and get hope’: First portion of facility to assist homeless population officially opened

More than 100 people who gathered Tuesday to help officially open a part of the Palm Springs Navigation Center walked away with a clear message from elected and appointed officials, law enforcement leadership, and others who spoke before the ribbon was cut. It’s hoped that some in the larger community will get the message as well.

“There are a few people who will be resistant to using the services that are provided here and will be hopeless,” said Police Chief Andy Mills, speaking to those gathered to help open the Early Entry Facility at a project more than two years in the making. “The message to them is to come here and get hope.”

Initially, that hope will be delivered in the form of a bed—50 of them opened up last week—and access to an array of assistance, such as addiction counseling. By August, that hope is expected to take the form of temporary housing in 80 safe, secure container homes, as well as onsite services aimed at rehabilitation, rehousing, and re-employing unhoused residents who live onsite.

Still, while Tuesday was a time to celebrate an effort involving multiple governmental bodies, service providers, and the city staff behind it all, it was also time to be realistic. The city has come a long way in combating homelessness, and the Navigation Center will be a valuable tool for future efforts, but it may never reach some who choose to remain in the washes and streets.

“What we have done today is prove that we are going to help people who want help,” said Councilmember Lisa Middleton. “This is truly a village. It takes all of us to make progress.”

While it might not seem like it, progress on the Navigation Center came relatively quickly, according to Greg Rodriguez, deputy director of government affairs and community engagement for the Riverside County Department of Housing and Workforce Solutions, who has been working on solutions to the homeless issue in Palm Springs for the better part of the past decade.

In October 2021, city staff first recommended purchasing the property at 3589 McCarthy Rd. which now houses the Navigation Center. At the time, officials hoped that the 47,000 square feet of usable space on 3.6 acres of industrial land could be turned into the type of facility on display Tuesday for roughly $12 million, including a $6 million purchase price.

Approval from the Palm Springs City Council to pursue the purchase came in November 2021. An agreement with Martha’s Village & Kitchen to help operate the facility followed, as did the hunt for funds to complete the project. 

Delays in obtaining construction materials during the pandemic pushed the opening out further than was hoped, and a spike in the cost of those materials drove the price to $40 million, a majority of which comes from county, state, and federal funds.

“This was a public project,” Rodriguez said. “Public projects don’t go this fast. It really is a master model of the type of solutions that are needed.”

The project was not without controversy, as some residents who live near the McCarthy Road site took issue with the fact that they were not approached about the city staff recommendation and only learned about it after The Post’s initial report one week before it was discussed by the Council.

Listening sessions and community workshops followed. But by then, the reputational damage had been done.

“Suddenly, we forgot how things are done in Palm Springs,” Councilmember Grace Garner, who represents the facility’s nearby residents and businesses, said at the time. “Part of the community has been left out of the conversation over and over again, and that’s why they’re mad.”

On Tuesday, while residents circulated in the entry of the Early Entry Facility looking at renderings of the future parts of the Navigation Center, Middleton took time to assure those who still had concerns that officials at all levels owe it to them to address those concerns.

Middleton concluded her remarks by saying, “It is critical that we are good neighbors to all the businesses and residents of this neighborhood.”

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