San Diego Convention Center To House Unaccompanied Minors

SAN DIEGO, CA — San Diego Convention Center will soon be the temporary home of unaccompanied migrant minors who entered the United States in search of asylum, county officials announced Monday.

When the shelter opens, it will provide minors under the age of 18 with food, health care, showers, a secure outdoor recreation area and a place to sleep, officials said. On average, unaccompanied children will stay an average of 30 to 35 days while they await reunification, the county said.

In a joint statement, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria and San Diego County Board of Supervisors Chair Nathan Fletcher said they decided to open the shelter at the request of United States Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Becerra.

“[When Becerra] requested our help to house some of the unaccompanied minors at the border, we knew it was the right thing to do," the statement reads. "Over the weekend, we agreed to open our Convention Center to the federal government for use as a temporary shelter. The City and County will support this federally funded effort by providing vital services to these vulnerable children who came to our country seeking safety."

The statement continues: "We are working closely with our federal partners to finalize the details for preparing to receive these young people and provide them with care, compassion and a safe space to transition while they are reunited with families or sponsors.”

Unaccompanied children are directed to such shelters for several reasons, including because they are orphaned or are attempting to escape trauma, poverty and danger in their home country.

“Every child in our care deserves a safe place to rest and to know their well-being is addressed. The County and City of San Diego has generously offered to partner with the Department as we abide by the law to provide unaccompanied children with food, sanitation and shelter," Becerra said. "Our task is to protect the health and safety of unaccompanied children, who are under the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, while they go through their immigration proceedings.”

The temporary shelter will be funded by the Health and Human Services Refugee Resettlement Program. The effort will be led several partners: the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Center for Disease Control and San Diego Convention Center.

This will be the second time in two years that the San Diego area has been a temporary home for families seeking asylum.

Officials said the county partnered with Jewish Family Services of San Diego two years ago to help house families at a closed San Diego County courthouse after the Trump Administration released migrants in border communities.

Most recently, the convention center served as the location for "Operation Shelter to Home," a regional task force that aims to help protect people experiencing homeless from the COVID-19 virus.

The collaborative effort between the city and county of San Diego, along with the Regional Task Force on the Homeless and San Diego Housing Commission served more than 4,000 people and helped nearly 1,300 people find longer-term housing.