Pop-Up Women And Children Shelter Proposed For Meadowview Neighborhood

MEADOWVIEW (CBS13) — The newest plan to help ease the homeless crisis in Sacramento may bring a 100-bed pop-up shelter to the Meadowview neighborhood.

A new shelter designated for women and children only could be built in Meadowview, right next to a popular community center.

City leaders say the site next to the Meadowview Community Center could house up to 100 homeless single women and children in a tent structure fully-equipped with bathrooms, counseling, and on-site security.

"This is the number one complaint of people in the city and we have to do something about it," councilmember Jay Schenirer said. 

Chane Lee knows first-hand how tough it can be living on the streets.

READ ALSO: Homeless Camps On The Rise In Sacramento Neighborhoods

"Any place that they open up for the homeless is a good thing. There were times growing up we slept in a park and we didn't have a place to stay," Lee said.

But not everybody in the neighborhood is cheering the plan.

City councilman Larry Carr represents the area and said the shelter does not belong next to the neighborhood's community center.

"We're not going to let this happen," Carr said. "It's right next to a ballfield, right across the street from people's houses, right next to the swimming pool, and the Panell center, totally inappropriate place to put it."

Neighborhood activists are now passing out flyers opposing the shelter.

ALSO: Stockton Police Search For Homeless Man Who Posed As Hotel Janitor

Last year, several homeless people died sleeping on Sacramento streets. Mayor Darrell Steinberg now hopes to have the new shelter open before the winter weather sets in.

"We can save a lot of lives this year and make a real dent in the problem," Steinberg said. 

There are roughly 300 homeless women and children in Sacramento.

The city is set to vote on this proposal, along with two others addressing the homeless issue in Sacramento, Tuesday. Steinberg's other proposals include a no-barrier shelter under the WX-area of the freeway downtown, and repurposing more than 180 existing shelter beds.

Steinberg also plans to put $1 million toward charities helping the homeless including St. John's and City of Refuge.