Because of the deficit, the shelter might have to close two weeks earlier than expected, said Carrie Gatlin, vice president of the rescue mission.
“We are not sure if Burbank will make a $25,000 contribution without Glendale stepping up to make a challenge grant,” she said. “We may have to end up closing March 3.”
The Burbank shelter originally planned to close on March 15, the end of the winter shelter season.
When the City Council approved the armory as an acceptable homeless shelter on Dec. 4, Councilman Dave Golonski proposed that Burbank give $20,000 in city funds to support the site and asked Glendale to match Burbank’s donation.
But Glendale has not matched, and has not been formally asked to contribute $20,000.
“We’ve never received a formal request,” Glendale City Manager Jim Starbird said. “It does seem odd that when Union Rescue Mission was trying to find a place for the winter shelter, they didn’t raise the issue of shelter funding here.”
On Friday, Golonski sent a message to Glendale Mayor Ara Najarian and the City Council to “invite them to be partners in this program and enhance the level of transitional services to help some individuals change their lives.”
The center’s March 15 closure was something Golonski considered when writing the letter.
“There is a time element to this,” he said. “We’ll see what their response is.”
With or without donations from Glendale, Burbank Mayor Marsha Ramos is optimistic that the center can stay open.
“I do not see it closing two weeks early,” she said. “Whether it’s corporate donations, the faith-based community or individual donations, I believe there are folks out there who said, ‘If there’s a $49,000 gap, we’ll help out.’
“When this community moves forward, we can move mountains.”
