PORT ANGELES — City officials issued a temporary occupancy permit Thursday to the Salvation Army that allows the organization to provide overnight shelter to homeless single adults at its new social service center at 123 S. Peabody St.
“We’re really happy to have a good solution,” said Nathan West, city community and economic development director.
Beginning at 10 p.m. today, the facility will be ready to provide shelter for the homeless, who will be provided with sleeping bags and floor mats, said Major Scott Ramsey, who with his wife, Major Cherilee Ramsey, runs the Salvation Army in Port Angeles.
The permit issuance follows what Scott Ramsey called “a roller coaster ride” of a week.
On Monday, city officials told organization officials they could not operate the emergency overnight shelter at 206 S. Peabody St. because it did not meet life-and-safety-related permitting requirements for overnight stays — even though it has been operating as a shelter since mid-February.
The shelter was providing a nightly roof for more than a dozen homeless single adults when it was forced to shut down.
City officials said they did not know until Monday it had been operating in that capacity.
Ramsey said the organization never checked the safety-related requirements needed to operate an overnight shelter.
Today, the organization’s new social service center, which has a kitchen, dining room and pantry, will be feted in a grand opening at 2 p.m.
The ceremony will include presentations by Mayor Dan Di Guilio and Salvation Army Northwest Divisional Cmdr. Doug Tollerud.
“They have the ability to provide shelter in that building, which does have a sprinkler system and does have all the life-safety issues covered,” West said.
The temporary permit will expire July 18, giving the Salvation Army time to complete a checklist.
“If they can’t do it within that time, we would look at continuing for another 30 days,” West said.
The organization still must addresses such issues as the lack of an expensive fire-suppressing sprinkler system that needs to be installed at the existing emergency shelter.
But that need could soon be addressed.
Ramsey said a man who prefers to remain anonymous has offered to pay the more than $100,000 needed to buy the sprinkler system and is talking with the organization’s planned-giving officials about how he might make that happen.
“This has been one long roller coaster ride from Tuesday,” Ramsey said.
From 16 to 20 homeless adults will be allowed to stay at the social service center from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. as they had at the emergency shelter, which is already being assessed for installation of a sprinkler system.
The Salvation Army began providing overnight services to the homeless after Serenity House closed its 20-bed Street Outreach Shelter at 505 E. Second St. in mid-February due to budget deficits and a sewer line collapse.
Serenity House operates the Single Adult Shelter at 2321 W. 18th St., 4 miles from downtown Port Angeles.
The organization provided extra cots and floor space to accommodate homeless people who were using the Salvation Army’s emergency shelter.
Serenity House Executive Director Kim Leach did not immediately return a call for comment Thursday afternoon.
Ramsey said his organization gave three or four bus passes to people who said they wanted to stay indoors at Serenity House.
In shutting down the emergency shelter, West said the city was upholding the International Building Code, which the state has adopted.
The Salvation Army still hopes to convert it into a permanent shelter with dedicated sleeping areas for men and women.
The organization has applied for $40,000 from Clallam County to make the upgrade.
The Ramseys will transfer June 29 to the Bremerton Salvation Army.
Majors John and Sabrina Tumey, who manage the Corps Community Center in Denver, will take their place.
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5060, or at pgottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
