Code Blue Program and Recognizing the Humanity of our Unhoused

Published on September 24, 2024

It was below freezing in our region on October 31, 2023, beginning the “Code Blue” season. Code Blue is a NY State mandated program where counties must provide shelter to unhoused people at risk of having to sleep outdoors in the cold throughout the winter months.   

This Legislature, elected from 14 different districts, rural and urban, knows that something serious needs to change to keep homelessness from impacting so many of our neighbors. 

Behind the scenes, while the day-to-day temporary emergency shelter is managed, a permanent facility is being planned to serve people year-round and expand our existing sheltering capacity. We should be able to start sharing that plan with the public later this Fall. 

To meet our responsibility under Code Blue, in six weeks, Tompkins County will stand up an emergency shelter facility for up to 80 individuals needing a warm and dry place to sleep this winter. In the words of Legislator Mike Sigler, we’re responsible for keeping people from freezing to death. 

These six weeks are critical because there are no viable solutions outside of temporarily repurposing this vacant County-owned building. Considering the time crunch, staffing availability, health and safety issues, building access, financial realities, and security requirements, we are left with only this option. The not-for-profit organization who has always run Code Blue for us does not wish to continue. We asked for but received no viable proposals from anyone else to perform this service for us. So, we must do it ourselves. 

Our staff, Legislators, and commercial real estate agents considered many buildings, hotels, and approaches. We are working thoughtfully around the clock to create a temporary operation as we also begin preparations for 2025/2026. 

We anticipate using this County-owned building for just 6 months, and plan to find a different solution for next year’s Code Blue season. 

Tompkins County believes that it’s humane to provide shelter, in the best way we can under the circumstances we face. In this case, it’s a congregate shelter located in downtown Ithaca with covered access to shower and bathroom facilities on-site. We will ensure that clients can access services and maintain privacy while sheltered.  

The most humane thing we can all do is recognize the humanity of the people seeking services. We can support the agencies that house and serve our neighbors, and advocate for housing development at every price point across our community. Legislator Greg Mezey recently addressed what community members can do to be housing advocates.   

Some unhoused individuals experience severe service needs, adding significantly to the challenges they may face in our community. I trust our social services, law enforcement, mental health, emergency response, and emergency medical services professionals to support people in need, and to address issues as they arise. The best thing we can do is help people experiencing these challenges to seek and use services available to them. Of course we can always improve, and we’ll need your support and ideas to do that over time.   

Homelessness in our community doesn’t happen because people want to be unhoused. Homelessness is a result of a lack of available housing of all kinds in our community. It persists because of housing instability – maybe that’s an eviction spurred by a domestic dispute, a loss of income, or rent raised beyond someone’s capacity. Maybe it’s someone using the resources they do have to support an addiction that they never wanted, or a relapse brings new challenges for them. Maybe it’s as simple as the difficulty in making and saving enough money to secure a stable place to live. There are many different stories of what leads to someone not having a safe place to lay their head at night.   

Homelessness is a nationwide issue. Tompkins County and the City of Ithaca are doing what we can to find solutions. Code Blue is just one part of the solution. If we can come together as a community, developing the long-term solution will be easier, and will lead to better and more sustainable outcomes for the people we serve and those who serve them. 

Dan Klein 
Chair, Tompkins County Legislature 

Keep up to date on how Tompkins County is addressing homelessness (http://tcgov.co/newsletters ) 

Apply for seasonal shelter worker positions at Tompkins County (https://www.tompkinscivilservice.org/civilservice/vacancies)