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Residents and Catholic Charities urge Austin council to allow warming center; matter scheduled for work session
Summary
A local resident and a Catholic Charities director urged the council to amend zoning to allow a conditional‑use warming center. Presenters cited SEMCAC counts (65 identified unhoused in 2025) and a Rochester shelter model; the council placed the item on the work‑session agenda for fuller review.
Shelley Hland, who said she has worked at SEMCAC for more than five years, told Austin City Council the city should amend its zoning ordinance to allow a conditional‑use permit for a warming center serving people who are unhoused. Hland said SEMCAC had identified 65 people as unhoused in 2025, including 58 adults and seven children, and cited multi‑year local counts that she said average roughly 83 people per year.
"A warming center will serve unhoused people here," Hland said, explaining barriers to housing that include stolen IDs, rising rents and deposit requirements. She described a range of living situations captured in SEMCAC outreach, from people sleeping outside to those living in vehicles or couch‑surfing.
Rudy Null, director of housing and shelter programs at Catholic Charities of Southern Minnesota, described a shelter model his agency operates that began in 2019. Null said the Rochester program began as a seasonal shelter, expanded to year‑round service, and at peak recently sheltered between 80 and 90 people per night. He discussed coordination with local police and use of de‑escalation and trauma‑informed approaches to reduce calls for enforcement.
Null said Catholic Charities is interested in partnering with Austin on a warming‑center model. "We definitely believe that regardless of what your situation is, everybody is worthy of shelter, especially during the cold one," he said.
Council members indicated the warming‑center request will be considered as a standalone item at the upcoming work session so presenters can have more time to provide detail and answer questions.
The council adjourned the regular meeting and moved the warming‑center discussion to the scheduled work session.
