Burlington has opened its emergency cold weather shelter 12 times since December in response to extreme temperatures.
The shelter has served 249 individuals in total this winter, said Sarah Russell, Emergency Services Director at the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity, who oversees the facility.
“These shelters save lives,” Russell said. “When we’re looking at wind chills that are minus 20 to minus 30 degrees sustained for an overnight period, that’s not survivable for many folks who are living unsheltered.”
When temperatures are expected to drop below negative 10 degrees for at least four hours, the call is made to open the temporary, overnight cold weather shelter by Fire Chief Michael Curtain.
“It’s about three days of work for one day of activation,” Curtain said.
Just one night of the activated emergency shelter requires 18 on-call staff members and four security guards. Cots are set up in the Robert Miller Community and Recreation Center, with 100-300 blankets donated from UVM’s Medical Center, said Russell.
The shelter stocks basic supplies such as toiletries, first aid items and Narcan, and also works with Feeding Champlain Valley to provide food for people on site.
Communications about the opening, such as flyers, are created and distributed by CVOEO to outreach teams and partners in Chittenden County to get word out about the shelter’s opening, said Russell.
Transportation is provided by the CVOEO and Burlington Parks, Recreation and Waterfront staff to those in need.
The emergency cold shelter can accommodate anywhere up to 80-90 people at a time, which inevitably can lead to interpersonal conflict, said Russell.
“Part of the reason we intentionally pull seasoned staff to run this shelter is because they have an excess of 10 years of experience in behavioral health,” said Russell. “So we’ve been able to successfully de-escalate any conflict that has arisen this season.”
People are granted entry to the Miller Center regardless of legal status; criminal records and immigration status are not considered or recorded. Pets are allowed, eliminating the choice between a warm place to sleep and your pet freezing without you, said Russel.
While rooms are not gendered, an all female-identifying room is offered for those who prefer it. People are allowed to come and go from the shelter and can show up at any point in the night with no curfew, said Russell.
The Fletcher Free Library works with the CVOEO to offer transportation to and from the Miller Center in the case of an emergency cold shelter opening, said Mary Danko, the Library Director.
The library offers coffee, puzzles and a place to relax without fear of loitering. Services such as charging stations and desktops are available to those who need them, said Danko.
The CVOEO offers 13 programs that assist people in need. Beyond cold shelters, these programs include helping people secure long-term housing, hosting finance workshops, as well as supporting pregnant mothers, families and survivors of domestic or sexual violence.
