Linn County investing $1M into winter weather shelter upgrades

CEDAR RAPIDS — Linn County is making moves to improve health and safety at its winter weather shelter to the tune of more than $1 million in building improvements.

Work is approaching the halfway mark on the almost $1.2 million renovation, per a recent update from Linn County Facilities Director Luke Fischer, and the project is on track for substantial completion this October.

Planned improvements include a build-out of the building’s sprinkler system, bathroom renovations, accessibility upgrades and more at the county-owned shelter at 1017 12th Ave. SW in Cedar Rapids.

“We don’t know if it’s really going to increase occupancy, … but it will allow us to have people spread out more,” said Linn County Supervisor Kirsten Running-Marquardt. “We’ll be able to safely occupy the second floor, and we’ll have the accessibility and safety pieces figured out a little better.”

The seasonal, overnight shelter aims to aid individuals in need of temporary housing between the hours of 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. during the winter months when other shelters tend fill up as the temperature drops.

Linn County owns the building, and operational costs are covered in partnership with the city of Cedar Rapids. It’s staffed by Willis Dady Homeless Services, which oversees night-to-night operations.

The most recent shelter season ran from Nov. 15 to March 31, during which the facility served 471 people in total. While the nightly headcount varied depending on the weather, the shelter housed an average of roughly 73 people per night.

Running-Marquardt said that number isn’t necessarily expected to change as a result of the shelter renovations.

However, she those improvements will provide a safer, more spacious shelter experience for visitors while the county and its partners continue to pursue more collaborative, systemic solutions to addressing homelessness in Linn County.

“We understand that (a temporary) shelter isn’t the long-term solution, but when you have really tough conditions in those very cold months, it’s important to do the best we can to provide a safe space for people who really have no other option,” Running-Marquardt said.

The county purchased the 16,200-square-foot shelter building in 2021 using $395,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds, and shelter services relocated there in 2022 from the old Fillmore Center building.

Some initial work was done to prepare for the first few shelter seasons, but Running-Marquardt said the Board of Supervisors knew additional upgrades would be needed to best utilize the former Alliant Energy building as a winter weather shelter.

Notably, the building lacked the sprinkler system necessary to allow for overnight occupancy. To get around that issue, the shelter has been contracting a paid “fire watch” with additional staff to stay up each night and be on the lookout for potential hazards.

The addition of the new sprinkler system will eliminate the need — and cost — for such measures and help expand occupancy to the building’s second floor.

The renovation also includes improvements to the facility’s heating, ventilation and electrical systems, as well as construction of additional restrooms and the replacement of the old elevator to bring it in line with modern accessibility requirements.

“We already know that we’ve been able to run a successful shelter here the past few years, so whatever upgrades we can do will only improve those operations,” said Willis Dady Homeless Services Shelter Services Director Denine Rushing. “For us, it’s a win-win.”

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