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The climate crisis is already . Last year, wildfires burned and damaged about 17,700 structures in the US. It was one of the most destructive seasons on record, and frighteningly, . Wildfires are already in and . Texas, Washington, and Colorado have also in recent years. In the past decade, climate change-fueled natural disasters drove internal displacement worldwide and forced 20 million people from their homes each year, .

That鈥檚 why some wildfire-prone areas are reworking emergency pandemic housing initiatives to shelter residents affected by extreme weather. Oregon and California are renting and purchasing hotels to house residents who have lost their homes to wildfire, as well as unhoused people living in fire-prone areas. They鈥檙e also converting some of the units into transitional and permanent affordable housing, depending on the needs of the community.

鈥淚n one single investment, you can add emergency shelter and also address the root cause of long-term lack of affordable housing,鈥� says Megan Loeb, program officer at Oregon Community Foundation. The foundation oversees the state鈥檚 , which launched in October 2020 to convert hotels to various types of housing. She adds that hotels and motels can almost immediately shelter people 鈥� plus they鈥檙e more welcoming to families and LGBTQ people, and safer during a pandemic, than congregate housing.

As , hotels and motels are much easier to adapt than, say, office buildings, and retrofitting is a faster and cheaper solution than building from scratch. Plus, repurposing existing structures like hotels . Even people living in encampments who are loath to go into shelters tend to be more open to staying in hotels, advocates say. Many hotel owners are open to selling, given how COVID-19 has decimated the tourism industry, and owners are generally reimbursed well, .

last June with $846 million in state and federal emergency funds to purchase hotels and establish permanent housing for people experiencing homelessness. Over six months, it created 6,029 new units of permanent housing. On July 12, Gov. Gavin Newsom expanded the program with to create another 42,000 units 鈥� the largest such investment in state history.

Seeing California鈥檚 success, Oregon launched a in the wake of the 2020 Labor Day fires, the . In one weekend, 4,500 homes were lost, many of them affordable. The wildfire devastation plus the ongoing pandemic meant shelters were full and also dangerous. The state was already mulling a program like Turnkey, and the fire created a new urgency. As part of a larger wildfire relief package, for nonprofit partners to purchase and renovate 18-20 hotels, with the goal of housing 1,000 people for up to a year, providing them with tailored supportive services, and funneling them into other permanent housing. $30 million of this was for six rural counties hardest-hit by the fires, and the remaining $35 million for shelter throughout the state for anyone experiencing homelessness.

鈥淧roject Turnkey really represents the state鈥檚 biggest investment in direct homeless services,鈥� says Rep. Pam Marsh (D-Ashland), a key champion for Project Turnkey whose district was hard-hit by the fires. 鈥淚 think this can be game-changing, because we鈥檙e able to give communities real assets that will be centers of activity for homeless services. Once you have a foot on the ground, more things are possible.鈥�

In its first phase, Turnkey 鈥� a roughly 20% increase in Oregon鈥檚 supply of emergency year-round shelter beds. The program partners are gradually adapting the hotel units into permanently affordable housing, adding amenities like kitchenettes to bring them up to code, according to Loeb. At the end of April 2021, Oregon that eases the ability to convert hotels into shelter and housing. In June 2021, Oregon approved another for Turnkey to fully fund approved projects and create 132 more units of emergency housing.

鈥淸Project Turnkey] addresses about one-tenth of the need in Oregon. It鈥檚 a very important piece of the puzzle, but it鈥檚 only a piece,鈥� says Gina Nikkel, Executive Director of the Association of Oregon Counties, which has been involved with Project Turnkey since its inception. She says many of the Turnkey clients have experienced trauma, and stresses the importance of wraparound services in helping the project succeed. 鈥淭hose displaced by COVID might need food brought to them, those hit by wildfires might need services to help them rebuild their home or to find permanent affordable housing, and those with mental health issues or addiction also need specialized help.鈥�

Temporarily housing people in hotels isn鈥檛 a new idea, but the practice as cities rented out hotels to shelter the homeless and give hotels a boost. Converting them into permanent shelter is more novel, but King County near Seattle 鈥� where the coronavirus first began to spread in the US 鈥� is one making a large investment. The county ran a that it鈥檚 reworking to address chronic homelessness, with $350 million to buy and convert hotels into long-term housing. It .

Adding to the urgency of this moment, the CDC鈥檚 eviction moratorium is set to expire at the end of July. Housing advocates have been about a potential wave of evictions, and will likely be hardest-hit. Wildfires and other natural disasters tend to 鈥� including people of color, low income people, and people with disabilities 鈥� who tend to be more exposed to dangerous conditions and have fewer resources to turn to afterward. Essentially, and inequalities, a shows.

It鈥檚 important to , according to Guillermo Ortiz, formerly a housing and climate researcher with CAP who worked on the report. After a natural disaster, typically 鈥渢his housing is not replaced on a one-to-one basis. Often the little affordable housing you have is being destroyed by these extreme weather events.鈥�

鈥淧olicy issues are looked at in silos, but the problem with climate change is that it affects everything,鈥� Ortiz says. 鈥淲hen we鈥檙e thinking about climate resistance plans, housing should absolutely be part of the discussion.鈥�

Santa Barbara, California, is attempting to do exactly that. It recently to lease a hotel and provide wraparound services for homeless residents living in 鈥渇ire-prone encampments鈥� for 120 days. In May, the city saw a streak of 18 small fires in densely vegetated homeless encampments. Amid this was , which was reportedly set on purpose by a person using methamphetamine. It forced the evacuation of a neighborhood, ultimately consuming nine acres and among residents that a similar blaze in different conditions could burn the city.

鈥淭he Loma Fire was really the impetus to make something happen now,鈥� said Jeff Shaffer, a housing advocate in Santa Barbara with who is involved in the project. He says two weeks in, the county has already housed 39 people in the Rose Garden Inn and put them on the path to permanent housing 鈥� and there haven鈥檛 been any complaints from the neighbors. He chalks this up to extensive relationship-building.

This article originally appeared at聽聽and is published in partnership with聽.听

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