Jesse Osmer

ALPENA — On Tuesday, the Alpena County Board of Commissioners approved extending how long to keep the temporary warming shelter at the Alpena County Fairgrounds open.

The commissioners decided to keep the shelter open until March 31, despite low numbers of individuals utilizing the facility.

County Administrator Jesse Osmer told the commissioners on Tuesday that the shelter has housed 12 individuals since the shelter opened on Dec. 24. Of those 12 individuals, nine were men and three were women; a maximum of five individuals used the shelter on Jan. 5.

Osmer also updated the board on the status of the shelter insurance. St. Vincent de Paul was able to secure proper insurance to operate the shelter moving forward.

Osmer told The News that of the $15,000 allocated to help fund the shelter there is approximately $9,000 left to sustain the shelter through until the spring. He added that the insurance will cost St. Vincent de Paul’s approximately $4,000, so there may only be enough money left to get through the end of February.

Additionally, Osmer noted the low turnout and use of volunteers as reasons why the shelter has cost only a fraction of the original amount allocated by the county.

Because of the freezing temperatures that Michigan residents have experienced the past week, and the Arctic temperatures Northeast Michigan has experienced thus far this winter, Osmer said that he’s surprised that no homeless individuals have been found deceased.

“If anything gives me solace is that we have a warming shelter,” he said.

Osmer told The News that because the county cannot afford to use tax-payer money for state-wide assistance, the warming shelter allows non-resident shelter guests two nights at the shelter to provide time to arrange assistance from their home communities.

Osmer explained that in these scenarios, the Finding Your Way Program can be helpful in connecting unhoused individuals with their support systems. This program would assist individuals and families who are stranded in Alpena in returning to their home communities.

Overall, Osmer said that the county nor the warming shelter staff have had to respond to any emergencies besides assisting an individual in a wheelchair who had been dropped off at the warming shelter too early.

Looking ahead to the spring, Osmer said that the county will continue enforcing their policy to not allow third party payments for campsites.

In July, the county stopped taking third-party payments for campsites at the fairgrounds from community partners who would often secure those sites for unhoused individuals.

He reaffirmed that this policy was not created to ban homeless individuals from seeking shelter at the campgrounds, but rather to ensure that that campground staff know who is staying at the sites.

Osmer said that this policy has worked better for third-parties and has not affected the number of occupants over the season.

Kayla Wikaryasz can be reached at 989-358-5688 or kwikaryasz@TheAlpenaNews.com.