Ulster County committee approves policy to require warming centers in southern regions

A Ulster County legislative committee approved Resolution 16 on Feb. 6, establishing a policy to require warming center facilities be established and operated in both the southeastern and southwestern regions of Ulster County and in Wawarsing, with county staff instructed to pursue available reimbursements including Code Blue funds.

The resolution, sponsored by a committee member identified in the meeting as Robert, was discussed at length before a friendly amendment was adopted to specify that the county should establish warming centers both in Wawarsing (the Ellenville area) and elsewhere in the southern half of the county (described in discussion as the portion generally south of Route 299 and including towns such as New Paltz and Lloyd). After debate the committee moved, seconded and approved the resolution as amended.

Committee members and county staff discussed the scale of need, potential locations and funding constraints. Deputy County Executive Contreras and a county director responsible for homeless services said Ulster County currently receives a Code Blue allocation based on historical spending patterns; the meeting record stated New York State had roughly $20 million available across the state and indicated Ulster County historically receives roughly $1 million (described in the meeting as about one-twentieth of the statewide allocation). Staff cautioned that Code Blue allocations are tied to historical spending and that operating a single warming center can cost roughly in the neighborhood of $1 million annually, making it uncertain whether the county could obtain additional state funds to run multiple centers without significant county contribution.

Speakers also described practical constraints on siting warming centers. County staff and commissioners said municipal zoning frequently limits congregate services and that faith-based properties have historically been the most feasible hosts for warming centers because their missions allow congregate services that municipal zoning otherwise restricts. The Kingston warming center, county staff said, has operated at multiple faith-based sites over the past decade.

A number of committee members and staff emphasized the need for more precise demand data before scaling operations. County staff said the department was awaiting the county's point-in-time count and noted that recent counts showed most users of existing warming services came from Kingston, with smaller numbers from Ellenville and the far southern portion of the county. Village trustee Sana Weisberg and other local partners were named by staff as active, motivated local contacts working on securing sites and providers in the southeastern towns.

The resolution's sponsors and county staff agreed to continue working with municipal officials, local partners and faith-based organizations to identify feasible sites and funding. Committee members asked the county executive's office to provide a cleaned-up, amended resolution text to sponsors and to continue intergovernmental coordination. Several speakers said additional social services (notably mental health) should also be considered as a next focus in the southern region.

The vote on the amended resolution was taken and the committee approved it as amended.

The committee record shows the item was discussed at length, amendments were made to clarify geographic scope (southeastern and southwestern regions plus Wawarsing) and staff cautioned that locating and operating additional warming centers will likely require negotiation of funding and overcoming zoning and facility limitations.