San Bernardino County to turn warehouse into homeless shelter

San Bernardino County and seven cities are turning a vacant warehouse into a regional homeless shelter. 

Dubbed the West End Regional Navigation Center, the shelter in Fontana will have 200 beds and health services for people looking for help getting off the streets. 

"Everything they need to be successful to get a pathway to a home will be in this facility," Fontana Mayor Acquanetta Warren said. 

The region's most recent homeless count shows nearly 2,500 unhoused people across San Bernardino County, down about 200 from last year. 

County officials believe the repurposed warehouse will give them the space and resources they need to make a greater impact. 

"There's a lack of beds throughout the county," said Diane Rundles, assistant executive officer of San Bernardino County. "We're the largest geographic county in the United States. We need to have that capacity."

Although project leaders said there will be 24-hour security and higher fire safety standards, nearby businesses said they still have concerns. 

"This isn't like a downtown Skid Row-type mission where you can just walk in and out for food," Fontana Deputy City Manager Phil Burum said. "This is a very specific housing service program."

Each person must have a referral to get a bed. Each of the cities involved will be able to refer homeless residents to the shelter, meaning people from all over the Inland Empire will come to the West End Regional Navigation Center for help. 

City staff said the surrounding streets will stay free of tents, and safety measures will be a top priority. 

"We're going to have this building constructed as if we were staying here ourselves," Warren said.

Fontana hopes to open the facility next year. 

"We're going to sit down with these people," Warren said. "We're going to evaluate what their needs are, and whatever they need to get on that pathway to permanent housing."