Southeastern Planning Group says no to homeless storage

The Southeastern San Diego Planning Group is the latest group to come out against a proposed 1,000-bin storage facility for the homeless in Sherman Heights.

The storage facility at Commercial ad 20th Streets will be a place where people can securely place their belongings during the day. The city has promised to keep the area clean, provide security, and prohibit loitering around the building.

But neighbors surrounding the Sherman Heights location say it will attract more homeless to their neighborhoods, in addition to those already getting pushed out of downtown and East Village.

The Southeastern group, which includes Sherman Heights, Grant Hill, Mount Hope, and Southcrest, echoed those concerns in a March 13 letter to Mayor Kevin Faulconer.

In its letter the group says that the putting the storage center in their community violates the community's zoning guidelines.

"One thousand homeless clients going to and from 20th and Commercial (Streets) will have grave impacts on the neighborhoods," reads the letter. "The warehouse location is by trolley tracks. Crossing these trolley tracks at the un-signalized corner of 20th and Commercial could be deadly for homeless clients with mental impairment or drug or alcohol addictions."

The group worries the area surrounding the facility would be overrun with trash and debris.

The city council is yet to approve the proposal.