Washoe County Housing and Homeless Services (WCHHS) is testing out a new pilot program within its Safe Camp by installing ModPods at Governor’s Bowl Park. Working with the Karma Box Project, ModPods are small, hard-walled sleeping spaces that contain a bed, electricity, heat, lighting, storage and a lockable door. WCHHS just received its first delivery of 10 ModPods last week and another batch of 12 earlier this week.
Around 50 people and tents are currently at Governor’s Bowl Park, but these ModPods provide more protection against the elements and offer better security for people’s belongings.
This new homeless housing option is another Safe Camp space along with the Cares shelter and Our Place women and children’s shelter in Sparks to help people get off the streets and transition into permanent, sustainable housing. The goal of the Safe Camp program is to provide a low barrier campground area for people to build relationships with case managers and give them services to help them get back on their feet, gradually steering them towards independent living.
“The Safe Camp is a pilot project through the homeless services group with the intent to try something new out and see if it works knowing full well that average tents wouldn’t provide the security that people need with the kind of weather we have here,” says Washoe County Media and Communications Manager Bethany Drysdale. She explained that WCHHS did look at tents with black room technology that could keep its occupants cool in the summer months but that their belongings would still be accessible to anyone. With this ModPod pilot program, the WCHHS is working with an advisory group of residents who are living in the Safe Camp and providing feedback on what is working and what is not with the ModPods.
The ModPod idea came about when WCHHS started researching shelters and came across the ModPods made by a company out of Portland, Oregon.
“They come with 24/7 security, electricity, and have locks on the door so their residents can go out and look for a job or do what they need to do while keeping their belongings safe,” Drysdale says.
WCHHS ordered the ModPods and planned to have those months ago, but due to transportation and manufacturing issues, the first shipment just recently arrived. In the meantime, the county was able to work with the Reno Housing Authority to move the existing tents in Governor’s Bowl Park to on of its RV-based, heated facilities.
Each ModPod costs $13,000 and is paid for out of the county’s homeless services budget, which includes monies from the general fund and ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act). However, Drysdale says that the county is looking at fundraising and seeking out private partnerships to help fulfill the need of providing transitional housing to homeless people.
“Our focus is to get people from tents into safe housing,” Drysdale says. The Safe Camp program is open to anybody, but inhabitants must be willing to want to move into permanent housing and manage their own daily living responsibilities. Washoe County helps choose ModPod temporary guests based on referrals from places including the Eddy House, Washoe County MOST Team, Health Plan of Nevada, the City of Reno, and others.
Drysdale admits that the new ModPods in addition to the CARES campus and women’s shelter doesn’t fill the need but it’s moving in the right direction.
“When moving into Safe Camp, people work with the case manager to get into permanent housing. A lot of times it’s a simple solution, helping people get an ID or open a bank account. Those are easy fixes,” she says.
There is quite a high number of homeless people in Washoe County, but hopefully the ModPods and strong community partnerships can help alleviate the problem.
“We just want to thank the Reno Housing Authority for stepping up. To make this all work it must be a regional approach; and the City of Sparks, the City of Reno, and Washoe County have really worked well together. It’s so important and we want to give kudos for all of those entities involved,” Drysdale adds.
For more information about the housing and homeless services in Washoe County, visit https://www. washoecounty.gov/homelessness/.
Michelle Perry-Roberts says
Starbrook Modular is building modular homes locally. We have a manufacturing site in Silver Springs, Nevada. Instead of going out of state for these buying these mod pods buy them locally from Starbrook Modular.
Sean says
Let’s see what one of these Pods looks like after one year of use.
janey says
probably a heck of a lot better than the torn up tents.
Maw says
Should just go along the river, and highways and byways, the dust bowl’s, all the places they been moved from, and went right back to !!! Sparks Blvd.has a bunch of the lowlife dope addict’s, as rude and disrespectful as they are lawbreaking predators exposing themselves to pedestrian’s using the sidewalk though there.should just go along and shoot everyone of them!!! Needles and bottles of urine and excrement everywhere!!! Any where these wastes of skin go they polute the area they are in! Disgusting bastards no respect for themselves or anything or anyone!!! FACTS IS ALL I SPEAK! Enough is enough! why???