Proposed homeless shelter in Point Loma could have a 700-person capacity

Point Loma residents are angry after discovering that the city of San Diego is considering making a 5-acre, city-owned lot on the southeast side of Liberty Station known as H Barracks into a mixed-use homeless shelter site.

There are several vacant buildings on the lot that is next to San Diego International Airport, near the pedestrian bridge going into Liberty Station and on the south side of the channel. According to the city's Homeless Shelter and Solutions Strategy, the site could have traditional shelters, but also potentially include a safe sleeping parking lot with tents and a safe parking lot for people to sleep in their vehicles. Demolition on the vacant buildings has already begun and the proposed timeline has the site opening as early as summer of 2024.

Point Loma residents say what they find most alarming is the sheer capacity of the proposed site - which the city has estimated could be anywhere between 300 and 700 people. 

"If you look at the rest of the plan, most of the other shelters that are proposed around the county are 30, 40 people at a local library or church. This is an inordinate impact on a community that is already heavily impacted," said Derek Falconer, a Point Loma resident who along with some neighbors started a change.org petition to rally opposition against the proposal. In two days, the petition was signed by nearly 800 people. 

The neighbors say they also have concerns with how close the site is to 9 area schools and the youth playing fields at Liberty Station. 

"They [children] will be exposed to people having psychotic episodes or using drugs and that is horribly unfair to put children on the front lines of some of the biggest homeless issues our communities face," Falconer said. 

Mayor Todd Gloria says the proposal is still in the very early stages and the city plans to do comprehensive community engagement with area residents. 

"We have more work to do there, what we have is a concept, we don’t have much more than that right now and my commitment is to work closely with the community, just as we did here in Balboa Park to understand what the possible impacts will be and try as best as possible to mitigate it," the Mayor said at a press conference unveiling the "O" Parking Lot near Balboa Park that will open this weekend for homeless people to sleep in tents. 

The Lot O safe sleeping site is the 2nd of its kind in San Diego. Each site utilizes an open area to create a homeless shelter than can house tents and other necessities and services, according to the city. The new Lot O site has a capacity for up to 400 tents, each housing two people.

The first safe sleeping site was opened in a parking lot at 20th and B streets in Golden Hill and has 148 people in 122 under its care, according to the city.