DAVIS, Calif. — Davis Mayor Donna Neville and Vice Mayor Gloria Partida are recommending that the city close its Daytime Respite Center at 530 L Street by Dec. 15 and redirect resources toward existing homeless service providers and expanded outreach programs.
The recommendation is included in a report scheduled for consideration by the Davis City Council on Nov. 17. The council will consider four options for the center, including closure, continued operations at the existing location and relocation to one of two city-owned properties.
Neville and Partida, who serve on the council’s Respite Center Subcommittee, recommend closing the facility by Dec. 15, 2026, or no later than Feb. 1, 2027, if additional time is necessary.
The subcommittee also recommends redirecting savings from the closure toward additional homelessness services, maintaining basic services primarily through Paul’s Place and expanding the city’s field-based outreach efforts.
According to the City Council staff report, the Daytime Respite Center has an annual operating budget of $569,000, including $266,000 from the General Fund and approximately $303,000 in grant funding.
The report states that city staff compared participation records from the Respite Center and Paul’s Place over a three-month period.
Of the 101 people served at the Respite Center during that period, 83, approximately 82%, were known to and actively visited both facilities.
Ten participants were unknown to Paul’s Place staff, while eight could not be matched through sign-in records or were temporarily unable to access Paul’s Place because of its code of conduct.
The subcommittee cited that overlap in recommending that services be consolidated at Paul’s Place, which opened in 2023 and is operated by Davis Community Meals and Housing.
In their Nov. 8 memorandum, Neville and Partida wrote that their recommendations were intended to provide a more efficient approach to delivering homeless services while maintaining continuity of care.
The memorandum identifies fiscal constraints, coordination with nonprofit providers, neighborhood impacts and greater emphasis on housing and employment as considerations in the recommendation.
The subcommittee reported that Paul’s Place has indicated it has the capacity to accommodate additional basic service needs from people currently using the Respite Center.
The Daytime Respite Center currently provides daytime refuge, showers, mail access, laundry vouchers, bus passes and connections to health care, behavioral health services, employment resources, emergency shelter and housing navigation.
The staff report states that the center serves as a low-barrier entry point with more than 420 walk-ins annually.
Under the proposed closure, services would be redirected to existing providers, including Paul’s Place and Fourth & Hope in Woodland.
The city would also maintain a laundry voucher program and transportation assistance for people accessing shelter services.
Existing Respite Center staff would be reassigned to outreach and other program support functions, including transportation, shelter operations and housing navigation.
Two limited-term positions supported by Permanent Local Housing Allocation funding would continue providing appointment-based navigation services. That funding is scheduled to expire June 30, 2028.
The subcommittee also recommends restructuring the existing homeless outreach program through the Davis Community Response Team.
According to the memorandum, the restructured team would work primarily in the field, meeting people experiencing homelessness and connecting them with available services.
The staff report identifies several effects of closing the Respite Center, including the loss of a second low-barrier walk-in location, an additional physical access point for coordinated housing services and the mailing address currently used by participants.
Staff also noted that the number of new clients at Paul’s Place would increase and that calls for service around the closed site could rise.
The report states that service providers and housing advocates have requested that the city maintain and expand services at the Respite Center.
HEART of Davis submitted comments regarding the facility’s future at the Oct. 20 City Council meeting.
Residents of the surrounding Davis Manor neighborhood have also raised concerns about neighborhood impacts, communication regarding center operations and quality-of-life issues.
The staff report states that the buildings at 530 L Street have reached the end of their useful lives.
Continuing operations at the current location would require improvements estimated at $225,000 to $275,000 using rented modular buildings or $375,000 to $425,000 using purchased modular buildings.
Those costs would be in addition to the center’s $569,000 annual operating budget.
The city has also considered relocating services to other properties.
One option would move operations to a city-owned modular building at City Hall, with estimated relocation and modification costs of $100,000.
That location would maintain services near transit and other downtown facilities but would provide less space than the existing center.
Another option would relocate operations to city-owned duplexes at 1101 H Street and 809 11th Street, adjacent to Paul’s Place.
The estimated setup costs for that location range from $78,500 to $148,500, excluding relocation expenses.
The duplexes are currently occupied by families at risk of homelessness who receive services through Paul’s Place. The staff report states that relocating services there would require moving those households and addressing associated legal and housing obligations.
City staff previously explored relocating the center to the Yolo County Health and Human Services Agency building at 600 A Street.
The proposed arrangement would have provided space for an enhanced wellness center alongside county public benefits programs.
Negotiations between the city and county ended in September without an agreement.
The staff report also outlines other homelessness-related programs approved by the City Council during 2026.
These include $223,000 for eight year-round shelter beds through Davis Community Meals and Housing, $129,500 for five reserved shelter beds at Fourth & Hope and $100,000 for the city’s 2026-27 emergency winter shelter program.
The city also approved two safe parking locations providing eight general spaces and six student-only spaces.
Combined spending on the Respite Center, homeless outreach and authorized shelter beds totals approximately $1.55 million annually, according to the report.
Staff recommends that the council select one of the four options at its Nov. 17 meeting so implementation and community notification can begin.
Under the proposed implementation schedule, the city would notify participants, staff, service providers and neighbors within 30 days of the council’s decision.
Staff would return to the council six months after implementation with a report on operations, participant outcomes, neighborhood feedback, calls for service and costs.
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