CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) During extreme heat, Charlottesville’s homeless population is at heightened risk.

While housing costs rise alongside the temperatures, shelter from the heat becomes even more essential.

One place of respite is The Haven, a multi-resource day shelter and housing resource center in downtown Charlottesville.

“Our mission is so much clearer and more obvious when we experience extreme weather,” The Haven’s operations director, Ocean Aiello told Cville Right Now. “That is better identifying the needs of Charlottesville’s most vulnerable population and providing support with the most basic of needs that often go overlooked.”

The Haven is a non-profit organization based in Charlottesville that provides services to individuals experiencing homelessness. It offers a safe and supportive environment for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, helping them transition into stable housing and a more secure life. Housed in the historic First Christian Church on the corner of Market Street and First Street the Haven’s day shelter is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to noon.

With three straight days of heat advisories in the city, the Haven has seen a rise in people seeking shelter.

“The Haven offers a place of safety, especially during extreme weather,” said Aiello. “It’s all about reliability and just knowing there’s going to be food, AC or water. There’s going to be a place for you.” 

While The Haven is able to offer support and the basic necessities for Charlottesville’s homeless population, the increasing need is a growing challenge.

“People know that our doors are going to be open every single day of the year no matter the weather,” said Aiello. “But our ability to keep up with the increasing need is going to get harder unless some policies change.”

Policy changes have made it increasingly more difficult to care for the homeless.

One recent shift has been the reduction in government funding for housing and homeless services. Budget cuts at both state and federal levels have left many cities struggling to keep up, Aiello said.

“We know the solutions to homelessness we know how to prevent homelessness, but the resources are far less than what the community need,” said Aiello. “This is only going to increase as housing costs continue to climb and wages don’t climb with it. We must continue to advocate and point to the solutions.”

Although, individuals experiencing homelessness face health risks when exposed to extreme heat, their heat-related experiences are grossly understudied. As heat waves become more common because of climate change, heat-related death and illness rates are expected to rise.

“In general, people experiencing homelessness are 200 times more likely to die from heat related illness than someone who has shelter,” said Aiello. “Folks who are exposed to the elements, especially an extreme weather, are going to be at much greater risk of death compared to someone who’s housed.”

Many cities, including Charlottesville, have looked to combat this issue, but many of the plans were quick solutions rather than something more established.

“Cities around the country need to make more established plans for extreme weather,” said Aiello. “We could really benefit from having a firmer plan around response for vulnerable populations in such extreme conditions.”

One solution that the City of Charlottesville has come up with are designated cooling centers for those in need.

Some of those centers include the Herman Key Jr Recreation Center and the Jefferson Madison Regional Library Central Brach both on Market Street and the Tonsler Recreation Center on Cherry Avenue.

Other locations in surrounding areas are the Greenwood Community Center in Crozet and the Yancey Community Center in Esmont.

Albermarle County also has many spaces open to the public to seek shelter from extreme heat during the day including both County Office buildings on McIntire Road and 5th Street as well as the County libraries.

“The Haven, we close at 5 PM on the weekdays and on the weekends, we close at 12 which puts people kind of out in the hottest part of the day,” said Aeillo. “It is important that we are empowering folks with the information on these cooling centers and we are hopeful that more centers will pop up.”