• Courtney Lamdin ©️ Seven Days
• The former Social Security building at 58 Pearl Street

After weeks of searching, the City of Burlington thought it had nailed down a plan for a warming shelter this winter.

The former Social Security Administration office at 58 Pearl Street had become available, at no cost, under a federal program meant to aid the homeless population. And a local shelter operator, COTS, was interested in running the facility, which would provide shelter for homeless people during the coldest months of the year.

But late last week, the city learned that three other applicants want to use the building. Federal officials won't disclose their identities. More than half a dozen local service providers polled by Seven Days said they hadn't applied.

It could be months before the feds decide who gets the space, and there's no guarantee that the eventual winner will operate a warming shelter. Meantime, the need for low-barrier beds is higher than ever — and winter is coming.

"I understand the federal government has to do their due diligence and go through their processes," City Council President Ben Traverse (D-Ward 5) said. "But I'm hoping to lean on our federal delegation ... to see if we can move this along, perhaps faster than average."

Located between an apartment complex and the former Bove's Café, the Pearl Street building has been vacant since the Social Security office relocated to the city's South End four years ago. In June, it was listed under the McKinney-Vento Act, a 1987 law that gives away unused or surplus federal buildings for free to organizations that serve homeless people.

The city had been looking for such a space. Burlington has had a low-barrier warming shelter in some form since 2014 but never with a consistent location or operator. City staff ran the shelter last winter at the former Veterans of Foreign Wars building on South Winooski Avenue, which has since been razed to build affordable housing.

The need for a low-barrier shelter, which admits people regardless of sobriety, is dire. More than 300 people, many with drug and alcohol addictions, are living rough in the greater Burlington area. And the problem is most visible in the Queen City, where tents have popped up in parks, cemeteries and along greenbelts.

The gradual wind-down of the state's motel housing program is expected to boost this population. By early October, more than 1,000 households will be evicted from Vermont motels, though it's unclear how many are in Chittenden County.

City officials told the feds in June that they were interested in opening a low-barrier shelter in the Pearl Street building. But in July, officials learned that COTS had also applied for the building, along with a separate state grant to run the facility.

COTS' application was more appealing to city councilors. The nonprofit has operated shelters for more than 40 years while the city only has twice: during a three-day cold snap in February 2023 and last winter at the VFW. Running a shelter required Sarah Russell, the city's special assistant to end homelessness, and another staffer to do overnights and make last-minute grocery runs — on top of their regular duties.

"The city doesn't have the budget to be in charge of running shelters," Councilor Becca Brown McKnight (D-Ward 6) said. "The choice was clear that it should be COTS."

The city dropped its bid after meeting with COTS. On Monday, councilors unanimously approved an agreement that pledges to advocate for state funds on COTS' behalf.

COTS typically runs shelters that have strict rules. People staying at its Waystation on lower Church Street, for example, must be substance-free and show that they're trying to find permanent housing. If their behavior becomes erratic, they may be asked to take a drug test, according to the nonprofit's executive director, Jonathan Farrell.

But Farrell said the organization is willing to run a low-barrier warming shelter this winter. The agreement with the city says the sides will define what, exactly, that means.

Joe Magee, deputy chief of staff for Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, wouldn't say whether COTS' tendency to run higher-barrier shelters gave the city pause. The agreement, he said, "recognizes the urgency that we're faced with."

"The willingness is there on both sides in recognition of what's needed this winter," Magee said. "We're definitely working together towards those goals."

The Pearl Street shelter would have 30 beds — some likely reserved for regulars and others available on a first-come, first-served basis — with health services and security guards on-site. The 7,400-square-foot space wouldn't have showers or laundry machines, though COTS may be able to serve hot meals, Farrell said. He hopes it could open by December 1.

"It's pretty bare-bones," Farrell said. "It's not going to be a fancy site, but it will be warm and safe and dry."

COTS would prepare and staff the shelter using funds from the state, which is offering $10 million to expand emergency shelter capacity. Farrell declined to say how much COTS requested. The state expects to announce grant awards in the coming weeks.

After running the warming shelter this coming winter, COTS would like to relocate the Waystation to the Pearl Street building. The new facility would have several smaller rooms and a total of 56 beds — 20 more than the current space. The Church Street shelter would then be converted to three or four permanent housing units for people transitioning from homelessness, Farrell said.

All of those plans are contingent on actually getting the building.

Officials from the federal General Services Administration told Seven Days that four homeless service providers, plus one "educational organization," submitted letters of interest for the property. But they wouldn't identify the applicants, instead directing questions to two other federal agencies that didn't respond to interview requests.

Until Seven Days informed them last week, city officials didn't know that other agencies were interested in the space, even though they'd asked federal officials about potential competition during a building tour last summer.

Seven Days contacted several social service providers — including ANEW Place, Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity, Howard Center, Spectrum Youth & Family Services, Steps to End Domestic Violence, and Turning Point Center — and all said they either didn't apply or didn't know about the Pearl Street building. Others didn't respond.

Magee, the mayor's spokesperson, said Mulvaney-Stanak has reached out to Vermont's congressional delegation to support COTS' application. Meanwhile, the mayor has been meeting with leaders of other Chittenden County towns about opening shelters in those communities. None is pursuing the idea.

That means there's no plan B for a winter warming shelter if COTS doesn't get the building. And time is running short. Organizations that submitted a letter of interest have until October 1 to follow up with a formal application. The feds then have until late November to decide who gets the building.

Even if COTS is able to carry out its plans, the facility would only be open for the winter. Next year, the shelter scramble would start all over again.