Oneonta warming station closed for season

Apr. 4—The warming station on Chestnut Street in Oneonta closed for the season Monday, April 1 — just as a bout of snowy weather arrived.

The warming station, which opened in October, was always slated to remain open until March 31.

It's run by Catholic Charities of Delaware, Otsego and Schoharie and receives funding from the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance through Otsego County Department of Social Services' Code Blue program — emergency measures for the homeless during inclement winter weather.

Representatives from DSS did not return a request for comment Thursday, April 4 on the amount of funding the department receives from the state for Code Blue.

The 2023-24 state budget included $20 million for social services districts' costs related to implementing Code Blue, according to a local commissioners memo from August 2023.

As defined in state law, a Code Blue alert must be called when temperatures are expected to fall below 32 degrees Fahrenheit with wind chill for at least two consecutive hours, based on the local forecast issued by the National Weather Service, in municipalities known to have the largest population of unsheltered homeless persons.

Christy Houck, CCDOS executive director, said Thursday that since the group uses Code Blue funds to rent the building at 291 Chestnut St., it can't use the building for any other purpose in the off season.

Houck said the building will be used for storage, meetings, trainings and personnel interviews for the next Code Blue season.

She said that when the warming station closed last year, the weather was warmer and there were no clients in the building.

In addition to shelter during the coldest nights, the warming station offers access to laundry, a case manager, and later in the season meals from The Lord's Table, as well as other snack foods and drinks.

"For the most part, we were full at night," Houck said.

Opportunities for Otsego provides Code Blue shelter services when the warming station is not in operation.

Temperatures dipped to around 30 degrees Wednesday night as a snowstorm rolled into Oneonta, according to the National Weather Service. The snow continued Thursday, but much of it turned to slush and only a couple inches accumulated.

Thursday's overnight predictions were for a low around of 29 degrees. While Friday night may see a low of around 32 degrees, weekend temps at night are predicted to dip to 28 degrees before rising again during the week.