COUNTYWIDE : Cold, Wet Weather Keeps Shelters Busy

Homeless shelters statewide usually are busy this time of year, and Ventura County facilities are no exception, officials said.

The National Guard Armory in Oxnard opens when the nighttime temperature falls below 40 degrees or 50 degrees when it rains.

Because of the rain and cold, the facility has opened its doors every night except one since Dec. 27, coordinator Mike Goth said.

The center, which offers clients a bed, an evening meal, breakfast and a shower, has been accommodating 60 to 70 men and women each night, Goth said. The facility, which can hold up to 120 people, is open from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Goth noted that the facility served about 1,045 clients in December, 1990, compared to 1,153 for the same period in 1991--an increase of more than 10%. “We expect (the numbers) to keep climbing as long as the weather stays rainy, cold and miserable,” Goth said.

Bob Costello, case manager at Project Understanding in Ventura, said the number of clients using that facility is 20% higher than in 1990. The facility is nearly always full at this time of year, he said.

Costello voiced concern that the private, nonprofit organization--funded by 30 churches, the United Way and the city--could receive less money if a initiative to cut Aid to Dependent Children is approved. The proposal by Gov. Pete Wilson to cut the funds by 25% goes on the ballot this year.

If it is implemented, “it will be catastrophic for people who are barely making it now, especially single women with children,” Costello said.

Nancy Nazario, the county mediator for the homeless, said it’s not unusual for facilities such as the Ventura County Rescue Mission and the Zoe Christian Center in Oxnard to be filled to capacity at this time of year.

Jerry Roberg, executive director of the Mission, said the number of people using the facility has increased by 30% since 1990. “We tend to see a lot more people when it’s cold and wet,” he said.