EUGENE — St. Vincent de Paul Society of Lane County (SVdP) will open a cooling shelter at Lane Events Center and take other steps to protect program clients, community members and staff from excessive heat in the forecast this weekend. Here’s an overview of SVdP sites that are available for heat relief through the weekend, and other steps the organization is taking to keep clients and staff safe as outside temperatures are expected to rise above 100 degrees F:
- With support from Lane County, SVdP will operate a low-barrier cooling center at Lane Events Center, 796 W. 13th Ave., on Saturday and Sunday, July 6-7. From 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. both days, Performance Hall Meeting Room 1 in the building’s northwest corner will serve as a day shelter where the unhoused or any other community members can take respite from sweltering conditions outside. Drinking water and sports beverages will be provided. Animals welcome but must be crated when inside the building. Pedestrian access is at 13th Avenue across from Monroe Street.
- SVdP’s Eugene Service Station (ESS) at 450 Hwy. 99 N will continue to serve as the area’s primary day-access center for unhoused adult individuals: open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. During the forecasted weekend heat wave, ESS will additionally serve as a cooling site with expanded space available to anyone who needs to escape the high temperatures. Drinking water will be provided, and water misters will operate near the front entrance to provide additional relief.
- Families experiencing homelessness will be able to access day-shelter services as usual at SVdP’s First Place Family Center, 4060 W. Amazon Drive; open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Drinking water provided.
- Water misters will provide relief for unhoused clients registered at two partially outdoor SVdP shelter programs — the overnight Dusk to Dawn congregate tent shelter, and the 310 Garfield Safe Sleep Site for RV/vehicle campers. Drinking water provided.
- To protect the well-being of employees who work outdoors to receive item donations from community members, on Saturday and Sunday SVdP will not staff several of its typically attended donation sites: 2890 Chad Drive, 1995 Amazon Pkwy., and the Glenwood transfer station. Materials will still be accepted at other St. Vinnie’s thrift stores with donation centers.