21-05-2025
County to use $4M for tiny cabins, housing vouchers after RV project halted
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — The Board of Supervisors has voted to divert more than $4 million in unspent funds from a paused project to create a RV parking lot in Lakeside towards other county homelessness initiatives, including a project to build dozens of tiny cabins in Lemon Grove.
Known as the Troy Street Sleeping Cabins, the project has been a point of contention for Lemon Grove residents since it was offered as an alternative to a similar proposal in Spring Valley that was abruptly nixed by the county amid community backlash.
The county pressed ahead with the new site, a Caltrans property near Troy Street and Sweetwater Road, giving it the green light last year despite similar pushback from Lemon Grove residents given its proximity to several schools.
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On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors voted to move $3.5 million of the roughly $4.4 million in unused funds allocated to the now-discontinued Willow RV Senior and Family Parking project in Lakeside to support the first year of the cabin's operations.
The Willow RV parking project had been halted in August of last year — a mere five months after it was approved by the Board of Supervisors — 'pending further view' by officials of a third-party report on the effectiveness of the county's provision of homeless services.
The remaining $868,568 allocated to the RV parking lot project will be moved to the county's Regional Homeless Assistance Program (RHAP), which hands out vouchers to unsheltered individuals for shelter at certain motels while providing other supportive services.
'These reallocated funds will go directly to programs that can make an immediate difference in the lives of people experiencing homelessness,' Supervisor Joel Anderson, who sponsored Tuesday's action alongside Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe, said in a statement. 'We are turning an unused investment into real, meaningful support.'
The initial 150-bed cabin project in Spring Valley was approved alongside the Willow RV parking lot early last year as key projects under the county's 'Compassionate Emergency Solutions and Pathway to Housing Plan.'
The plan, implemented in 2022, intended to add new options to the county's shelter portfolio that differ from the traditional congregate settings, akin to the city of San Diego's safe parking and sleeping sites.
To this end, the county began pursing the original Spring Valley tiny home project, receiving state backing in the form of a $10 million grant for construction and operation on top of 150 cabins at no cost. When the project was pulled, this support was rescinded.
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Supervisor Montgomery Steppe pitched the Lemon Grove site as another avenue to continue with the project as a last ditch resort to keep the help from being clawed back. However, the plot's size was not able to accommodate its original 150-bed capacity.
The project was then revamped, reducing its size to about 60 to 70 cabins with a maximum capacity of about 140 people. County officials added it also will be focused on serving veterans, seniors and adults.
The entire tiny home project is expected to cost about $11 million to build and $3 million annually to operate with the on-site services. Construction is expected to begin this summer with the goal of bringing it online by 2026.
According to the county, the construction costs are being covered by left over funds from COVID-19 assistance under the American Rescue Plan Act. Meanwhile, long-term operation costs are expected to be supported with RHAP funding.
'The Troy Street project and RHAP are examples of how the County is stepping up to provide both shelter and services effectively, and ultimately, a pathway to stable housing,' Montgomery Steppe said in a statement. 'These projects are going to provide positive intervention for our most vulnerable residents, and I'm proud to be part of that work.'
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