Homeless flock to Leeward shelter
By Scott Ishikawa
Advertiser Staff Writer
KALAELOA — Barely three weeks after the state's new Kalaeloa homeless shelter opened, it is already nearly two-thirds full.
Tenants at the Onemalu shelter, a refurbished three-story former Navy barracks with 41 one- and two-bedroom residential units, have filled up the facility's first floor and most of its second floor. The transitional shelter opened the first week of January.
The rapid activity has surprised experts, but rather than blaming that on the post-Sept. 11 downturn, they said the situation at Kalaeloa shows the continual need for those types of facilities on O'ahu, particularly on the Leeward side.
The state has two other shelters on the Leeward Coast, and both are always full.
"It's gotten to a point where once the second floor is filled, we'll temporarily stop taking in clients so we can set up social services, such as job training/placement and substance-abuse programs," said Onemalu facility director Rosanna Daniels-Kanetake. "Then we'll open up our third floor."
But Daniels-Kanetake said the facility is still accepting applications, with about 100 forms picked up so far.
"That's because even when we reach a full house, we expect people to transition in and out of the facility rather quickly," she said. "We don't want to discourage people from applying, but we also don't want to become overwhelmed."
Sandra Miyoshi, homeless programs administrator for the state Housing and Community Development Corp. of Hawai'i, said she was surprised how quickly people have occupied the Kalaeloa shelter.
"Some homeless experts wondered if people were willing to go to Kalaeloa, because the area is sort of isolated," Miyoshi said. "But the Kapolei community kept saying there was a need for one out there, and they were right. Another reason for the demand might be that the shelter is new."
Lynn Maunakea, executive director of the nonprofit Institute of Human Services, said it has also been referring clients to Kalaeloa because its own shelters are constantly filled.
"Our shelter alone has a waiting list for 12 families, up from four a year ago," Maunakea said. "Single women at our shelter is also slightly up."
Like other state-operated shelters, Onemalu charges a fee, which ranges from $200 to $535 a month. That pays for utilities and social service programs.
The refurbished facility is part of the July 1999 closing of Barbers Point Naval Air Station, which transferred four buildings on 13 acres to the state Housing and Community Development Corp. for homeless shelters and to provide related health and job-placement services.
Another Kalaeloa shelter for singles, former Building 39, is expected to be completed by summer.
Building 50, nearby, is being used by the Hawai'i National Guard's Youth Challenge program.
The state estimates that more than 50,000 Hawai'i residents have lost their jobs or seen their work hours cut since Sept. 11, with twice the number of claims for unemployment insurance over the same period last year. About 1,200 families were cut from the welfare rolls in December.
While other shelters, such as the IHS facilities in Kalihi, have not seen an unusually sharp spike in the number of homeless entering their shelters since Sept. 11, Miyoshi said the requests to homeless outreach programs have gone up dramatically.
"I think we'll find that out in the next three to six months, how the economy is doing, because the shelters are usually a last resort for many," Miyoshi said. "People that have been laid off after Sept. 11 may be staying with a relative or friend for now while they try to get back on their feet."
Reach Scott Ishikawa at sishikawa@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2429.
