The City and Borough of Juneau will be moving its cold weather seasonal shelter to the Juneau Arts and Culture Center from Friday. The move is a bid to address concerns for the homeless population around the spread of the coronavirus with the aim of creating more space between people.
The shelter is currently at St. Vincent de Paul. JACC and Centennial Hall are closed for the moment and most staff are working from home right now according to Executive Director Nancy DeCherney. Guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend people maintain a distance of six feet between each other and also recommends that public gatherings should be no more than 10 people. The cold weather seasonal shelter will continue to maintain the same operating hours and will be running through to April 15 with the possibility of extension if necessary.
Director of the Glory Hall homeless shelter Mariya Lovishcuk said she would not be sending any of the people who stay at the shelter to the JACC as it does not have adequate facilities and space and feels the city is not doing enough to help Juneau’s homeless community.
