Update: Turlock cancels 50 homes made from shipping containers after confusion over grant
The Turlock City Council has rescinded plans for 50 apartments made from shipping containers.
Tuesday’s 5-0 decision came five months after the council voted 3-2 to seek a $9.95 million state grant for the project. The city staff has since learned that the program requires that most of the homes be permanent rather than transitional.
The South Walnut Road project would have served seniors and veterans at risk of becoming homeless. The city owns the 2.5-acre site in a mostly industrial zone south of West Main Street.
Nearby businesses complained in April that the project would increase theft, trash dumping and other problems. Supporters said the residents would have to sign contracts promising to behave well and to get counseling and other services they might need.
Mayor’s pledge to neighbors
Mayor Amy Bublak said Tuesday that she supported the initial plan because the container homes eventually would go away.
“We told the public in that area that this would be transitional, it would not be permanent,” she said.
Council members Cassandra Abram and Rebecka Monez also favored the project in April. Members Kevin Bixel and Pam Franco were opposed.
Franco on Tuesday noted that she dissented also because of this high cost per unit, nearly $200,000.
The funding would have come from the Homekey program at the California Department of Housing and Community Development. It seeks quick-turnaround solutions for the homeless.
Texas company reuses containers
Turlock had planned to partner with Customer Container 915, based in El Paso, Texas. The business converts used shipping containers into small homes with up-to-code wiring, plumbing, heating, cooling and other systems.
The project would have helped Turlock transition people from emergency shelters to longer-term homes, said Katie Quintero, development services director for the city.
A federal court ruling allows local governments to enforce anti-camping ordinances only if they have enough shelter beds.
