Surge shelter beds slated for removal April 30 as Willow Commons micro‑units open

At the April 1 meeting of the hand commission in Anchorage, Human Service Division manager Darcy Montalvo updated commissioners on housing and homelessness operations, saying the system is beginning a planned decompression of winter surge shelter beds and that the process is scheduled to finish on April 30.

"Surge beds are scheduled to be completely decompressed on April 30," Montalvo said, describing efforts by shelter case managers to help residents move into other housing options, including assisted‑living placements and voucher‑accessible units. She said the shelters will return to year‑round baseline capacity as occupants transition out of surge beds.

Montalvo outlined the operational picture: congregate shelters typically maintain about 100 year‑round beds each; during the winter the system activated additional surge capacity (Linda’s Place rose to about 150 beds and East 56 was expanded to as many as 200 at peak). "Those additional beds are slowly being taken out of rotation," she said, adding staff will not cut all surge beds at once but will let beds phase out as they empty.

The commission also heard about an ongoing clothing drive that runs through April 10, with drop‑off locations at multiple shelters and ACH offices. Montalvo asked for standard clothing donations (pants, shirts, socks, undergarments) and cold‑weather items such as gloves, hats and coats.

Commissioners asked follow‑up questions about Willow Commons, the recently opened micro‑unit project. Staff confirmed Willow Commons is operating and that the operator is Anchorage Recovery Center; the units are being filled and services are being provided on site.

The item was presented as informational; no policy motions or ordinance votes were required or taken during the update.