Marin Nonprofits Launch Initiative for Winter Shelter Program

A coalition of nonprofits in Marin County is poised to enhance emergency winter shelter options for the homeless, expressing dissatisfaction with the current county-led efforts. According to Mark Shotwell, the chief executive officer of Ritter Center in San Rafael, the county has participated in planning meetings but has not taken a leading role or provided necessary resources.

The group of nonprofit representatives has begun discussions on a self-initiated shelter program aimed at providing refuge during inclement weather. Currently, their efforts are in a pilot stage, with a single trial activation taking place during the day at a church in Novato. Shotwell noted that the proposed shelter would open during rainy or cold weather, as well as heat events that do not meet the county’s severe weather emergency shelter (SWES) criteria. “All partners are volunteering staff, space, and resources, and there is no funding service yet,” he explained.

The initiative involves a partnership between Ritter Center and the Marin chapter of Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD), which is seeking a small grant to support its only staff member, Adriana Rabkin. The program aims to supplement, rather than replace, existing emergency shelter services.

“This inclement weather shelter program is designed to help unhoused communities during severe weather and reduce preventable harm by providing shelter, resources, and medical and behavioral health care services directly in the communities where unhoused residents live and gather,” Rabkin stated in an email. She emphasized the goal of eliminating transportation and geographic barriers by bringing essential services directly to rural and coastal areas within Marin.

In recent developments, Marin County supervisors approved a contract worth $161,534 with Episcopal Community Services to operate the county’s severe weather emergency shelter for the fiscal year spanning from July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026. Gary Naja-Riese, a homelessness official with the county, explained that this contract is part of a broader initiative to maintain service continuity as the Department of Health and Human Services prepares for the upcoming fiscal year.

Currently, homeless residents are accommodated overnight at the Marin County Health and Wellness Campus located at 3240 Kerner Blvd. in San Rafael. These individuals are admitted at 17:00 and required to leave by 06:00 the following day. The contract mandates that Episcopal Community Services provide participants with a hot dinner and a takeout breakfast. Additionally, transportation to the St. Vincent de Paul dining room at 820 B St. in San Rafael is also included.

The county activates the emergency shelter only when strict criteria are met, such as forecasted temperatures dropping below an average nighttime low of 36 degrees for three consecutive days or below 45 degrees over two days in conjunction with significant rainfall or hazardous conditions. These criteria were revised in 2024, lowering the three-day temperature threshold from 38 degrees to 36 degrees.

Kieawnie Clar, director of the Marin Interfaith Homeless Chaplaincy, voiced her concerns regarding the criteria, stating, “We have such extreme weather. It is either really, really cold and wet and rainy or it’s really, really hot. In both instances, people need a place to go, and it doesn’t always meet the criteria.”

For the current fiscal year, the county has maintained the same funding level for Episcopal Community Services as in the previous year. This decision comes after a relatively low number of shelter openings the previous year. Naja-Riese noted that invoicing occurs monthly on an actual cost reimbursement basis, meaning the contractor is compensated only for completed work. The emergency shelter was operational for just two nights during the 2024-25 fiscal year due to an uncommonly mild winter.

Despite this, San Rafael recorded over 15 inches of rainfall between October 1, 2024, and January 12, 2025, with temperatures dipping to 36 degrees on the final day of 2024. In the preceding fiscal year, the emergency shelter operated for 23 nights and served 357 individuals, averaging approximately 16 per night.

The previous winter shelter program, which functioned from November 1 to April 20, was managed by the St. Vincent de Paul Society of Marin, in collaboration with around 40 local churches and civic organizations. Under this program, participants were transported by bus to shelters provided by the host churches.

Naja-Riese clarified that the SWES and the former rotating emergency shelter team program, known as REST, are distinct entities with different operational structures and criteria. He further stated that community organizations contracted by the county can provide bus passes to assist those in need.

The most recent count of Marin’s homeless population, conducted on January 23, 2024, identified 1,090 individuals without stable housing, of which 788 were entirely unsheltered. Notably, 24% of this population were aged 55 or older, while 7% were aged 65 or older, and 10% were under 18. According to county health officials, 47 unhoused individuals died in Marin last year, and research shows that homeless individuals die nearly 30 years earlier than the average American, reflecting a significant public health concern.