SPRINGFIELD – The Memorial Building at 765 A St., in Springfield, was once home to St. Vincent de Paul’s Egan Warming Shelter. This year, the organization has its eyes on the former WareMart parking lot for temporary overnight warming shelters.
The proposed site is located next to Bi-Mart at the corner of Mohawk and Centennial Blvd., according to Carlos Lepe, SVDP’s emergency response manager. The shelter will have several Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)-style tent structures.
At an Oct. 2 Springfield Human Services Committee meeting, Jeff Paschall, community development director, told the committee that the tents will be heated with propane tanks.
“They’re all going to be heated throughout, so my guess is they could probably withstand down into zero degrees and lower, it’s just a matter of how much propane they’re going to go through,” Paschall said.
The structures are sturdy, weatherproof, portable, and versatile. SVDP has the tents on order for the site and is awaiting their arrival. The projected delivery could be early to mid-November, according to Lepe.
“The Egan season does start officially in November; however, ultimately, when we open is up to our discretion, and we take into consideration weather variables,” Lepe said.
Once the tents arrive, the company will train staff how to set up and operate the structures.
According to the Egan Warming Centers website, volunteers provide meals and a safe place to sleep on dangerously cold nights. Lepe is trying to coordinate with local businesses and organizations to find a solution to prepare meals for the Springfield site.
“This year, SVDP as a whole has seen a lot of budget cuts primarily from county funding,” he said. “I have had to be very resourceful and creative when it has come to my solutions because they need to fit within several categories. ‘Does the solution fit within the budget? Does it fit within this specific use case? Is there a better, maybe even nonconventional solution?’”
