Tulsa is preparing to open an inclement weather shelter next month for people experiencing homelessness. The shelter will operate around the clock from Nov. 17 to March 31.
Located at BeHeard Movement, 7216 E. Admiral Pl., the shelter will start with 50 to 60 beds, according to a news release from the City of Tulsa, and will expand to serve up to 250 people during extreme weather emergencies. Funding for the shelter comes from money the city received through the American Rescue Plan Act.
Operated in partnership with CREOKS, a nonprofit organization that provides behavioral health services, people will have access to case management, housing and employment navigation, medical services and more.
“Opening this new inclement weather shelter is a key step forward in our work to reach functional zero homelessness in Tulsa,” Mayor Monroe Nichols said in the release. “This facility will ensure that no Tulsan has to sleep outside when temperatures are too extreme, and it reflects our city’s shared determination to protect every member of our community.”
Nichols has pledged to reach functional zero homelessness by 2030, making sure Tulsa’s homeless population never exceeds shelter capacity. Part of that plan includes expanding that capacity. Earlier in October, the city purchased the former juvenile detention center with plans to turn it into a new low-barrier shelter expected to open within the next 12 to 14 months.
A number of services providers — including A Way Home for Tulsa, Iron Gate and the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma — will provide meals at the inclement weather shelter. But the city says it still welcomes donations for warm clothes, hygiene items and non-perishable food.
Donations can be made at the inclement weather shelter or at CREOKS in midtown Tulsa, located at 4103 S. Yale Ave.
Ismael Lele is a Report for America corps member and writes about business in Tulsa for The Oklahoma Eagle. Your donation to match our Report for America grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting this link.
