On Friday morning, March 31, a broad group of community partners gathered to celebrate the progress of the East Beamer Neighborhood Campus and break ground on the forthcoming Walter’s House Treatment Center.
The East Beamer Neighborhood Campus represents a paradigm shift in addressing homelessness through the provision of both shelter and services in one location. Friday’s groundbreaking of an expanded Walter’s House residential treatment center marked the next step in developing this important local and regional resource. The new Walter's House will provide expanded bed capacity and support for those struggling with drugs, alcohol, and other substances. Unhoused families will “backfill” the current Walter's House facility in Downtown Woodland, providing desperately needed family shelter in Yolo County.
Friday’s event also celebrated the substantial progress that has already occurred at East Beamer. The City of Woodland commenced construction of the Emergency Shelter in June 2020 and the facility was occupied by January 2021 when the City turned the keys and land over to non-profit affordable housing developer Friends of the Mission and shelter operator Fourth & Hope. The Emergency Shelter was followed by 61 permanent supportive manufactured homes that were completed in Fall 2022 and fully occupied by early 2023. At full buildout, the campus will provide temporary and permanent housing for 170 people and substance use treatment capacity for 60 people. The facilities will cluster around a shared green, a garden, and a community and health center. Broward Builders, Inc., a Woodland business for over 30 years, partnered with the City to construct the shelter facility. The permanent supportive housing units were manufactured locally by Woodland’s Cutting Edge Modular.
“To all those with a compassionate heart and a giving spirit, thank you for helping this become a reality,” said Woodland Mayor Vicky Fernandez on Friday morning. “It’s a great day to celebrate the goodness of the people of Yolo County and the people of Woodland.”
Yolo County Supervisor Gary Sandy told the assembled crowd “Thank you for such a deep-seated commitment to those who need assistance in this community.” County Supervisor Angel Barajas noted that the project is already making a positive impact, adding “we know that [unhoused individuals] are being served well at this campus.”
The City of Woodland and County of Yolo, in collaboration with local nonprofit Friends of the Mission, funded construction of the adult-only emergency shelter. In addition to generous State of California funding, Partnership HealthPlan of California (PHC), Dignity Health Woodland Memorial Hospital, the Sutter Foundation, and other funders have also made significant contributions toward the project.