Hamilton Family shelter leaves Haight, (July 2006)

By Mayra Martinez

After several months of unsuccessful lease negotiations, the Hamilton Family Center homeless shelter left the Hamilton United Methodist Church––at Waller and Belvedere––last month. The crisis center was started by the church during a particularly cold winter in 1985.

The growing church raised the rent in April, and the new payment was beyond the Family Center's budget. The rate had been frozen since 2001, and even the new monthly amount requested by the church was below commercial rental prices.

The Family Center will integrate with the Hamilton Family Residences in the Tenderloin, another of the five Hamilton Family Center programs in San Francisco that provide emergency shelter, transitional housing and support services. The 18 families that were staying at Waller & Belvedere moved into the residences on Eddy Street the last week of June.

“We really look at this in a positive light," said Family Center Development Director Suzanne Sheedy of the move. “We looked for the best out of the situation for the families and the organization, and this is it.”

Space had become a major issue for the church, which celebrated its 100- year anniversary in April. The Haight Ashbury Food Program will continue to operate out of the kitchen, but the gymnasium area will once again be available for church activities. Rooms above the gym may be leased to other non-profit organizations that require less square footage.

"In order for both the church and Family Center to grow after 20 years, it was best to reidentify," said Lochlein Sekona, president of the United Methodist Church’s Board of Trustees. "This is a new era for the church and we will take this year to find out what are our needs and the needs of the neighborhood. We are very open."

Church leaders are currently deciding how to best use the space, and are in talks with several neighborhood organizations and the mayor’s office to thoroughly investigate possibilities that align with the church’s mission and needs. Suggestions so far include showers for local homeless, a senior citizen center, a community exercise facility, and an after school study & computer center for church and local youth.