Steffi Broski
CNS Staff Writer
Homelessness is not always a big-city problem. Just ask Patty Record.
Record is the coordinator for Powerhouse Transition Center, a transitional living program for women in Folsom, a well-to-do suburban enclave of less than 70,000 people.
“Some women have been homeless and slept in a car, some have been in programs for years, some come to us from broken families or bad relationships,” Record said.
In 2004, Powerhouse Ministries opened the Powerhouse Transition Center on Wales Drive, offering a 9-month to 2-year transitional living program for women. Now, eight women live there, a few of them with their children, and plans are underway to expand the center.
While Folsom residents receive priority, the program accepts women from the entire Sacramento area. Residents follow a daily program of classes on finance, anger management and parenting skills. Many enroll in academic classes to earn a GED and find out what kind of work they want to do upon completing the program. Counseling is a fundamental part of their stay too. A case manager helps each person to set individual goals.
Record knows the need is much bigger. There are no overnight shelters in Folsom; homeless are forced to “disappear in the night,” she said. Record said in suburbia, the homeless are not as obvious as in downtown Sacramento.
“If you go to the park at certain times, you might see people playing cards- and all of them are probably homeless,” she said. “People have been in denial for a long time.”
Record said she knows of at least 30 homeless in Folsom, some of them children. The National Coalition for the Homeless estimated that in 2006, 30 percent of the homeless were families with children. Single women comprised 17 percent, and minors without families, 2 percent.
But exact numbers are difficult to determine, even in a community as small as Folsom.
“I know when the light rail was coming in a lot of people were against it because they were afraid that the marginalized were coming into our society,” said Stephenie Carr, the missional living director at Folsom’s Oak Hills Church. “But they are already here.”
This month, the transitional living center is planning to start an expansion. There are plans for an exercise room, a visitor’s area, a bigger classroom and a commercial kitchen. Record said she is accepting applications as there will be room for two or three more adults and a few children.
To be accepted into the center, women must be drug-free and are tested randomly during their stay. Though the program is faith-based, it is not mandatory for the women to be or become Christians. But, Record said, classes are designed with a spiritual perspective.
One of the current residents is Kathy, who declined to give her last name because she wants to shield her teenage daughter’s identity.
“I learned a lot about myself,” she said. “It was mainly the love and support that gave me an open mind to change.”
Kathy said she began using drugs at 13 and spent time in prison. Now, she is planning to become an EMT.
She said the biggest problem for women entering the center is low self-esteem. The center gives woman a safe and caring environment to build up their self image and turn their lives around, she said.
Powerhouse Ministries Pastor Nancy Atchley gives tours of the center on the first Thursday of every month.
“I feel sometimes like people think we have a bunch of addicts and alcoholics here. We started the tours so people see this is not a dump,” said Record. “It’s a bunch of neat ladies in here that picked themselves up and are doing something with their lives.”
Several area churches, volunteers and non-profit organizations assist Powerhouse Ministries. Oak Hills Church volunteers cook and serve dinners to women and children at the center for two to three months per year.
Like other non-profit organizations, the economic downturn has had an effect on Powerhouse Ministries, Carr said. Powerhouse receives about 100 calls per week asking for assistance with food, rent and gas.
“People used to turn to family members and close friends when they lost their home, but now you have whole extended families that have this problem,” said Carr. “It’s a really complicated issue.”
With a declining economy, the need for funding and volunteers for programs such as the Powerhouse Transition Center, or its other areas of service like the Drop-in-Center and Neighborhood Outreach, is bigger than ever. Unfortunately, resources dwindle as fewer people are able to donate money.
“No matter how hard we are hit by this economy, there are people that are hit harder,” she said. “Some people have to eat a dinner that costs less, but others don’t eat anything.”
Monday, May 11, 2009
Rancho to consider Folsom Blvd. zoning policy
By Megan Hansen
CNS Staff Writer
The Rancho Cordova Planning Commission this month will consider a plan designed to help Folsom Boulevard business and property owners cope with zoning changes and economic woes.
The plan comes as a response to some business and property owners who say they’ve experienced more vacancies along Folsom Boulevard as a result of the city’s new zoning codes.
The zoning changes limit the use of some properties on Folsom Boulevard to encourage more residential and retail spaces instead of large-scale commercial. Concerns about these changes were presented to the Rancho Cordova City Council on May 4.
The resulting “Folsom Boulevard Relief Plan” is a provisional amendment to the Folsom Boulevard Specific Plan, which was adopted in 2006.
The new plan would extend the amount of time property owners have to fill vacancies from six months to eighteen months. Current law states that if property owners cannot find a tenant within six months, they forfeit their past property use and must abide by the new zoning code.
Megan McMurtry, of Rancho Cordova’s Economic Development Department, said the City Council is open to changing the law.
“At first, we proposed extending the vacancy time from six to 12 months before the non-conforming use status would be lost on the property,” McMurtry said. “But the council recommended 18 months because of the state of the economy.”
Curt Haven, Rancho Cordova Economic Development Director, said the goal of the proposal is to prevent vacancies.
“If a whole building, not just one tenant, goes dark than the new 18 month extension will kick in,” Haven said. “However, it will not be retroactive. If a business has already been closed more than 18 months it won’t apply to them.”
The new plan would allow commercial uses in medium-density residential zones along Folsom Boulevard.
Non-conforming properties in the medium-density residential zones now have very limited commercial reuse. Under this provision, most retail, services and office uses would be permitted.
“Midtown Sacramento is a good example of mixed-use properties,” Haven said. “It allows for people to walk right out of their doors and into a restaurant.”
The amendment would help Folsom Boulevard property owners like Kim To. To has a non-conforming mixed use property with a retail tenant and no residential units. She’s been struggling to get a business permit for more than three months.
“I bought the property without knowing that the zoning had changed,” To said. “I’ve been waiting, waiting and waiting. In the meantime, my tenant has not paid rent because we can’t get the permit.”
Under the “Folsom Boulevard Relief Plan,” To would have 18 months instead of six to secure her tenant and business permit. She would be allowed to have retail, service or office uses on her property without worrying about residential units.
McMurtry said there are more steps to take before the plan can be implemented.
“After we take this to the Planning Commission, we’ll hopefully take it back to the City Council on June 1,” McMurtry said. “Any actual changes to amend the plan would happen in July.”
To said July is too far away.
“At first they told me it was going to be in June and now it’s July,” To said. “It’s been very difficult. I have to pay my mortgage and it’s been so difficult.”
The Planning Commission will consider the “Folsom Boulevard Relief Plan” at 6 p.m. May 14 in the City Hall Council Chambers, 2729 Prospect Park Drive.
CNS Staff Writer
The Rancho Cordova Planning Commission this month will consider a plan designed to help Folsom Boulevard business and property owners cope with zoning changes and economic woes.
The plan comes as a response to some business and property owners who say they’ve experienced more vacancies along Folsom Boulevard as a result of the city’s new zoning codes.
The zoning changes limit the use of some properties on Folsom Boulevard to encourage more residential and retail spaces instead of large-scale commercial. Concerns about these changes were presented to the Rancho Cordova City Council on May 4.
The resulting “Folsom Boulevard Relief Plan” is a provisional amendment to the Folsom Boulevard Specific Plan, which was adopted in 2006.
The new plan would extend the amount of time property owners have to fill vacancies from six months to eighteen months. Current law states that if property owners cannot find a tenant within six months, they forfeit their past property use and must abide by the new zoning code.
Megan McMurtry, of Rancho Cordova’s Economic Development Department, said the City Council is open to changing the law.
“At first, we proposed extending the vacancy time from six to 12 months before the non-conforming use status would be lost on the property,” McMurtry said. “But the council recommended 18 months because of the state of the economy.”
Curt Haven, Rancho Cordova Economic Development Director, said the goal of the proposal is to prevent vacancies.
“If a whole building, not just one tenant, goes dark than the new 18 month extension will kick in,” Haven said. “However, it will not be retroactive. If a business has already been closed more than 18 months it won’t apply to them.”
The new plan would allow commercial uses in medium-density residential zones along Folsom Boulevard.
Non-conforming properties in the medium-density residential zones now have very limited commercial reuse. Under this provision, most retail, services and office uses would be permitted.
“Midtown Sacramento is a good example of mixed-use properties,” Haven said. “It allows for people to walk right out of their doors and into a restaurant.”
The amendment would help Folsom Boulevard property owners like Kim To. To has a non-conforming mixed use property with a retail tenant and no residential units. She’s been struggling to get a business permit for more than three months.
“I bought the property without knowing that the zoning had changed,” To said. “I’ve been waiting, waiting and waiting. In the meantime, my tenant has not paid rent because we can’t get the permit.”
Under the “Folsom Boulevard Relief Plan,” To would have 18 months instead of six to secure her tenant and business permit. She would be allowed to have retail, service or office uses on her property without worrying about residential units.
McMurtry said there are more steps to take before the plan can be implemented.
“After we take this to the Planning Commission, we’ll hopefully take it back to the City Council on June 1,” McMurtry said. “Any actual changes to amend the plan would happen in July.”
To said July is too far away.
“At first they told me it was going to be in June and now it’s July,” To said. “It’s been very difficult. I have to pay my mortgage and it’s been so difficult.”
The Planning Commission will consider the “Folsom Boulevard Relief Plan” at 6 p.m. May 14 in the City Hall Council Chambers, 2729 Prospect Park Drive.
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