MODESTO, Calif. — Come mid-November, Stanislaus County will begin transitioning the homeless out of the Modesto Outdoor Emergency Shelter (MOES) and into an indoor emergency shelter connected to the Salvation Army shelter on 9th Street.
"It's like living in an apartment complex, but tents," said MOES resident Dren Martinez.
Martinez has lived in MOES since it opened back in February and before that, she spent a winter living outside in Beard Brook Park.
"It was so cold. I'm talking, I had three leggings on, four socks, sweats, sweaters, T-shirts, undershirts, long-sleeve shirts," she said.
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But before things get too cold this fall, Stanislaus County is planning to close the outdoor shelter more than 400 people call home and move those people into their new indoor emergency shelter.
"The outdoor emergency shelter was always intended to be a temporary response to the Ninth Circuit Court ruling. It's not an ideal situation to have folks outdoors," said Becky Meredith, deputy executive officer for Stanislaus County.
Inside, each person that chooses to stay at the new shelter will get their own vanity, locker, indoor and outdoor storage. They also have brand new separate bathrooms and showers for men and women, not to mention washers and dryers for their personal clothes, extra charging ports and access to at least two meals a day.
"We're trying to be as accommodating as possible, so we're working on policies that will allow some pets and as many possessions as we can accommodate," Meredith said.
The county says it's going to cost about $3 million to run every year, being paid for by a mix of state grant money and state Homeless Emergency Aid Program (HEAP) funding.
But ABC10 found, not everyone is thrilled about the looming move.
"For me, it's not a very good idea for a lot of us. It's not a very good idea because we're going from our own space, our own little home, over to basically a locker and a bed," Martinez said.
It is a relief for others who said they are just looking for a place to stay warm.
"With the weather coming up, I guess that's a good thing... The showers are a good thing. So, it sounds like there's more pros than cons," said MOES resident, Tasha Richie.
Everyone staying at the new shelter will also have access to more services to get back on their feet, as the county is planning to relocate their access center next door.
"The point is, best practices tell us if the homeless population can receive services near where they're sheltering, that there's a better chance of success," Meredith said.
The process of moving people from the outdoor shelter to the indoor shelter is set to start on November 15.
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