Juneau’s cold-weather emergency warming shelter closes on Tuesday. The City and Borough of Juneau decided to close the Mill Campground last year, and homeless residents will be left to disperse camp again this summer.

Juneau is Alaska’s most homeless city per capita. Its rate is one-and-a-half times that of Anchorage and three times that of Fairbanks. St. Vincent de Paul Juneau began running the warming shelter at the Thane Warehouse in October 2023.

“The warming shelter is literally a place for people to go when they have no other options,” Whitney Gannon, the shelter’s manager, said after presenting about its importance to the Juneau Assembly on Monday.

“They’re difficult cases,” she said. “They’re people that their families won’t even let them stay on the couches anymore. It’s not that they’re just choosing to be homeless. They have mental issues. They have drug addiction. Whatever it may be, this is the last place for them to go. When the warming shelter closes down, they have nowhere to go.”

Gannon took over as the shelter’s manager around Christmas. She said her lived experience allows her to de-escalate situations and problem solve.

“I started at the free store up at Smith Hall and I was actually at the homeless camp two years ago when it was up at the Mill ground,” she said. “I got housing through St. Vinny’s and I got employment through St. Vinny’s, so they’ve been really good to me.”

Gannon recognized that reinstating a summer campground would require more supervision than it has had in the past, but it’s still needed. CBJ closed the campground that was south of downtown Juneau due to a high number of assaults, theft and drug use during the summer of 2023.

“Even if it has to be a campground that has rules and regulations, that they have to get up during the day and do things to actually better themselves, I think it would still be beneficial for a lot of people out there,” she said.

Dave Ringle, executive director of St. Vincent de Paul Juneau, said the main challenge faced this winter was the Thane warehouse’s location, which is across from the Juneau Rock Dump. The Glory Hall provides transportation for people in need of shelter, with two trips from the Mendenhall Valley in a 15-passenger van.

He said the shelter’s location in Thane made it difficult for staff to reach it since it lacks a bus stop. The shelter’s staff averaged between eight and 10 this winter and is ending the season with six employees, which Ringle said is twice as many as in April 2024.

“I wish we had a building somewhere between the library downtown and the Mendenhall Mall where we would be on a bus line,” he said. “I think it would be a lot more convenient.”

Outside of the shelter’s location, Ringle spoke about the success of its second season. He said they encountered considerably fewer problems — six people were trespassed this year compared to more than a dozen last season. He added they kept an open line of communication with surrounding businesses. The number of medical and police emergencies also decreased.

“They’ve escalated the last couple weeks, primarily because I think people are worried about what’s going to happen when we close,” Ringle said.

He said St. Vincent de Paul peacefully housed an average of 48 people a night throughout the shelter’s season, which spans from October to April. In February, it averaged 58 people.

Fewer people are coming this month, with an average of about 40. Ringle attributed less conflict this year to having a structured environment with consistent policies and procedures.

“People know what to expect,” he said. “They know we’re not going to tolerate disruptive behavior, and it’s a place to come to sleep and get a little bit of food before you sleep. But we’re not trying to be more than just an emergency shelter, and that has worked for the people this winter, having those rules in place.”

If people couldn’t sleep, they quietly watched movies that were shown every night on the shelter’s back wall.

On Dec. 25, 2024, unhoused Juneau resident Ashley Rae Johnston, 30, was killed in a police shooting. Johnston’s death was the second officer-involved fatality in Juneau in 2024. Steven Kissack, 35, who also experienced homelessness, was shot during a confrontation with officers downtown on July 15, 2024.

“One of the toughest nights was Christmas night,” Ringle acknowledged. “After the shooting, we knew that things were going to be high tension. And actually three volunteers came, in addition to staff, and I was one of them. What I found interesting was allowing people to blow off steam meant that they could calm down enough to get a good night’s sleep.”

He said those staying at the shelter that night “blew off steam” by taking a walk and then coming back inside.

Ringle said installing plumbing was a major improvement compared to last year, but what made the shelter successful this winter was retaining staff who understand the struggles of homelessness.

“I think one of the things I hear is the ability to give back and be contributing, rather than depending on people, contributing to the community, makes a positive difference,” he said.

He said Gannon and another shelter employee, Archie Hunt, stepped up to enforce policies with compassion this winter.

“It’s not an easy job,” Ringle said. “I mean, you have to have the right combination of patience, compassion and backbone. Too much of one or the other can be bad, but together and working with other people, you can provide a safe and comfortable environment.”

• Contact Jasz Garrett at jasz.garrett@juneauempire.com or (907) 723-9356.