Dallas To Provide Shelter to the Homeless During This Week’s Snow

Dallas, with the help of several local organizations, opened temporary shelters in Fair Park to provide the vulnerable homeless community with protection from the impending winter storm.

“As a City, we want to ensure that every resident has a safe and warm environment, especially during inclement weather. We appreciate our partners and their commitment to this mission,” said Interim City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert in a press release.

The shelters are a partnership between Austin Street Center and OurCalling, a large outreach organization combating homelessness, with the assistance of the city’s Office of Homeless Solutions.

“We know from experience that people get frostbite and they pass away when they’re on the streets when we don’t have services like this,” Daniel Roby, chief executive officer of the Austin Street Center, one of the organizations operating the shelters, told the Observer. “I certainly believe that it is enormously critical that we at least provide access for people to live until tomorrow.”

Bins of donated cold weather gear, 900 cots and medical service stations fill the space inside the impromptu shelter in the Grand Palace Building, 3701 Grand Ave. The shelter will remain open until the nightly temperatures rise above freezing. A line had formed before the doors opened midday Sunday, and when the shelter reached 75% capacity by Monday morning, Roby began meeting with city officials to open a second.

It opened midday Tuesday at the Austin Street Center emergency shelter at 2929 Hickory St. Each shelter takes roughly 48 hours to set up. Volunteers are present around the clock to manage the operation, and contracted security and city paramedics are on site at all times.

“It really takes great effort by all partners, and they all do just a fantastic job,” said Roby. “It does require a lot of both city departments as well as nonprofit organizations.”

In the backrooms at Fair Park, Dallas Animal Services and the SPCA lined up crates so no one has to abandon their pet. Also, the North Texas Behavioral Health Authority is offering mental health services to anyone seeking them. Upon arrival, people staying in the shelters are logged into the Homeless Management Information System, a data collection system that tracks the care provided to homeless community members.

Clients receive a blanket and some snacks before being directed to the proper side of the shelter, divided by gender, with a special section for people needing medical attention. Those staying at the shelter will receive three meals a day and are encouraged to seek assistance from the services available. Roby says an ulterior goal is to provide the homeless community with more opportunities to seek permanent housing.

“For as many people as possible, this is really the beginning of a pathway out of their homeless circumstance,” Roby said. “A lot of people don’t access shelter until inclement weather, so that provides an opportunity for us to engage them where we otherwise might not be able to.”

Local transportation services are operating in designated pickup zones to provide free transportation to Fair Park. Dallas Fire-Rescue is in charge of after-hours transportation to the shelter. For people who don’t want to stay overnight, cold weather packs, with hand warmers, gloves and a mylar blanket are available at the city’s recreational centers.

“This weather is extremely dangerous, but if you are going to stay outside, please get one of these cold weather packs,” said Christine Crossley, director of the Department of Homeless Solutions. “It will be your best chance for survival.”

Once the temperatures rise, the shelter inhabitants will be provided with a DART pass and directed elsewhere. Crossley says police will be on site to prevent congestion and an increase in camping at Fair Park.

In 2024, Housing Forward counted over 3,700 people experiencing homelessness in Dallas and Collin counties. Managing homelessness in the city has been a topic of contentious debate that reached a peak in December when Dallas Hero, a local nonprofit, threatened to sue the city for failing to enforce encampment bans.

“Austin Street Center is grateful to have the responsibility of assisting the City to coordinate this effort,” Roby said in a press release. “Too often, we talk about what isn’t working – but this collaborative effort has been an effective partnership that saves lives every year.”