Protesters rally against proposed mega shelter

Protesters gathered Friday morning on California St. to oppose plans for a thousand-bed homeless shelter across the street on Kettner Blvd. and Vine St.

Scott Silverman was at the rally. He spent years battling drug abuse and living in shelters, but now Silverman runs a nonprofit to help others.

"Putting a thousand people in a brick-and-mortar building is like putting them in a jail cell," said Silverman. "Not only are you going to get on each other's nerves. You're going to have conflicts that arise, things that are in place. Meal planning, shifting things around."

Jon Lutack also recovered from homelessness and drugs. He worries the shelter could become a safety issue if lots of people battling drug abuse and mental health issues are all in one place.

"What does this area offer that you think is healthy and different from the streets of downtown?" said Lutack. "I believe we're a product of our environment. And unless I'm taken out of that environment, I don't really believe there's a hard chance for change."

The Office of the Independent Budget Analyst released a report this week estimating that the shelter, with a 30-year lease, could cost the city more than $30 million a year.

It also claims that smaller shelters with fewer than 100 beds tend to have better outcomes for their residents.

But Mayor Todd Gloria argues that the report is wrong, saying it's safer and cheaper to keep people in a large shelter on Kettner and Vine.

"It's cheaper to house people permanently. That's why we're pursuing this approach," said Mayor Gloria. "It's not above market; it's not too expensive. And this is the right thing to do for the most pressing issue in our city right now, which is our homelessness crisis."

The San Diego City Council is set to go over plans for the shelter in a meeting on Monday.