As summer wraps up and kids head back to school, dozens of local families will have a new opportunity at a more stable future, thanks to a public-private partnership that is adding capacity at Rachel’s Promise Center for Women and Children, a shelter for women and kids in Downtown.

The shelter expansion allows Rachel’s Promise to expand from its current capacity of 50 beds to 210 beds. The first 50 beds opened at the shelter last year for women.

“For the second year in a row, unsheltered homelessness is down in San Diego, declining another 6.6% this year. That progress comes from expanding shelter, strengthening outreach and helping more people move into permanent housing,” Mayor Todd Gloria said. “These 160 new beds at Rachel’s Promise will help us build on that progress by giving more women and families a safe, dignified place to go and the support they need to find a permanent home. I’m grateful to the San Diego Housing Commission, Catholic Charities and our private-sector partners for helping us deliver this important resource.”

The City of San Diego funds the Rachel’s Promise shelter program’s day-to-day operations. The shelter expansion for families and children is supported partially through funding from California’s Homelessness Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) grant program. The San Diego Housing Commission (SDHC) contracts with Catholic Charities, Diocese of San Diego (Catholic Charities) to operate the program. The annual cost to operate the shelter is approximately $5.6 million per year, including administrative costs.

Families staying at the shelter receive a safe place to sleep, meals, clothing, access to shower facilities, laundry, housing-related case management, care coordination, referrals and support for enrollment in health care resources, and assistance applying for public benefits. In addition to a safe place to sleep and meals, participants receive housing-focused case management, care coordination and help connecting to health care, public benefits and other services. The space also includes artwork from local artists and has amenities specifically for kids, like a playroom and computer space for homework.

“I’m proud to have the newly redesigned and expanded Rachel’s Promise Center for Women and Children here in District 3,” said Councilmember Stephen Whitburn, who represents the area. “This shelter shows what we can accomplish when the City, community partners and the private sector work together. It gives some of our most vulnerable unhoused residents, including women, seniors and mothers with children, a safe place to stay and a path toward greater stability.”

Rachel’s Promise will ultimately include approximately 110 beds for single women and 100 beds for women with children. Shelter participants are referred to Rachel’s Promise through the Coordinated Shelter Intake Program, which SDHC administers.

“Too often, families with children who are experiencing homelessness search for shelter, but there aren’t enough options available for them,” said SDHC President and CEO Lisa Jones. “The new beds at Rachel’s Promise will make a meaningful difference — offering women with children and single women a safe place to stay and the support they need to move toward a stable home of their own.”

“For more than 42 years, Catholic Charities has accompanied women experiencing homelessness and housing instability through our Rachel's programs, providing compassionate support, safety, and pathways as they journey toward stability and self-sufficiency. The opening of Rachel's Promise Center for Women and Children marks a transformational milestone in that mission,” Catholic Charities CEO Appaswamy “Vino” Pajanor said. “What began in 2022 as Rachel's Promise with 40 beds has now grown into a comprehensive and one-of-a-kind center with 210 beds, allowing us, for the first time, to serve women and their children together. Through our partnership with the City of San Diego and the San Diego Housing Commission, we are creating a trauma-informed environment where families can access the resources, stability, and care they need to move forward with dignity, healing, and hope."

The expansion was made possible through a public-private partnership. Property owners Dene Oliver and Jim McMillan worked with Catholic Charities on improvements needed to expand the shelter and create spaces that offer greater safety, privacy and dignity for women and children. They also donated furniture and office equipment to support shelter operations.

“A little less than two years ago, I was anchored in Maine off a beautiful island with one of the most incredible sunsets I’ve ever seen. I called Vino Pajanor (who I had not met) to ask if he and Catholic Charities would be interested in joining OliverMcMillan with our vision to create a women and children’s center at the location of OliverMcMillan’s long-term headquarters, Eagles Hall in downtown San Diego,” Dene Oliver said. “We must have talked for 45 minutes in our first conversation, and Vino could not have been more passionate about the vision. When I hung up, I knew my old friends at Catholic Charities and my new friend Vino would be the ones to step forward like no one else and create something that had just not been done before. Twenty-four months later, we are opening Rachel‘s Promise, which we hope will inspire others to serve women and children in evolution with grace and dignity.”

In addition to Rachel’s Promise, the City funds several other programs for families with children, including a 168-bed family shelter in Barrio Logan, 18 camper trailers for families at the Rose Canyon Safe Parking site and a shelter for people and families fleeing domestic violence, in partnership with the County of San Diego.

The Rachel’s Promise expansion is part of a broader effort to increase shelter capacity, with 200 more beds planned this fiscal year compared to last year. Additional programs will include 60 beds for families and a 72-bed program for adults supported by opioid settlement funds. Ultimately this year, the City will fund approximately 1,683 traditional shelter beds across 17 different programs, 760 tent spaces at the Safe Sleeping Program and 350 Safe Parking spaces for individuals experiencing homelessness in their vehicle.