Governor axes Hagatna homeless shelter because it didn't align with redevelopment plans

A plan to open a homeless shelter in Hagatna was killed by the administration - to make way for more GovGuam offices. 

The plans for the government homeless shelter at the old legislature on Hessler Street  building were axed after Gov. Lou Guerrero wrote to the Department of Interior asking to "remove the homeless component of the project" to "utilize the property for essential government functions."

The building - but not the land it sits on - was recently bought by GovGuam using $2.5 million in DOI funds.

Plans for a homeless shelter in Hagtana were initiated during former Gov. Eddie Calvo's administration, but Gov. Leon Guerrero wrote to DOI asking to remove the shelter plans because they didn't align with plans to "revitalize our capital of Hagatna. I am firmly committed to once again seeing Hagatna as our island's center for culture, arts, government."

Bureau of Budget and Management Research Director Lester Carlson told KUAM the governor has taken the lead on this project.

"She just thinks it is a wonderful idea that we can locate all these agencies and basically this is really truly her project," he said.  "Initially there was an idea that after working hours, the session hall area would be utilized for secure sleeping for homeless people. We re-thought that idea. The governor is putting together a more comprehensive homeless plan to address island-wide as opposed to just Hagatna." 

According to Carlson, the Guam Ethics Commission, the Hagatna Revitalization and Redevelopment Authority and Veteran's Affairs will now join other GovGuam agencies including the Department of Integrated Services for Individuals with Disabilities, the Guam Development Disabilities Council and the Department of Labor's American Jobs center will be taking up spaces at the newly-bought old legislature building.

He said this homeless shelter just wasn't feasible for this administration.

"It had logistical issues associated with it," Carlson said. "You have ongoing governmental functions from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and then everybody would clear out. Then you would have to have the session hall set up a lot of rules- no alcohol, no smoking, no spitting. Logistically, it was a little more than we can possibly chew. A bulk of the homeless people are actually up in the north. We were unable to secure that grant but we're still trying to come up with the plan and the funding to be able to meaningfully address the homeless situation on Guam."

But Angelina Lape, head of the Guam Homeless Coalition, disagrees with Carlson's statements and said the coalition was totally on-board when they were approached by the last administration with plans for a shelter in Hagatna.

"Any sort of shelter, no matter how big or small it is - if we can give these people a place to stay for the night - that would be really helpful for them," she said.

Instead, while DOI already approved money for a shelter, that money was reprogrammed and now the governor is asking Interior for $1.5 million to build a homeless shelter in the north. That request hasn't been approved.

Meanwhile, Lape says Hagatna's homeless are in dire need of help right now.

"If you're looking at Hagatna and speaking specifically of Hagatna, all the people that we identified in Hagatna are street homeless - they're not living in substandard housing," she said. "These are people that we find out at the beaches, at the parks, under the bridge. So definitely that's showing there's a need that Hagatna has been on the top 5." 

Lape says there are more homeless in the north, but those homeless for the most part live in substandard housing, while Dededo and Hagatna have high numbers of "street homeless" - people who actually live on the streets.

And while Carlson said the governor is coming up with a comprehensive homeless plan, Lape said there's no need to wait.


"We have the data over the years we've been doing this point in time count and you can look at it and see the trends," she said. 

While there is a long-term shelter in Guma San Jose in the north, Lape said asking Hagatna homeless to go all the way up north with little to no resources is a lot to ask - especially since space at the shelter is hard to come by.

"They also have a certain number of beds available for 24-hour drop-ins, but those are always full," she said. 

While reprogramming the use of the old legislature building won't benefit the capital's homeless population, Carlson maintains GovGuam got a sweet deal.

"It's a wonderful deal," he said. "It's $2.5 million from federal money 1.5 of the acquisition the building which includes $350,000 which will go toward improvements."