$7.2M Secured To Upgrade SMC Event Center's Shelter Capacity

SAN MATEO, CA — Local leaders have secured more than $7 million in state funds to kick off work to bolster the San Mateo County Event Center's capacity as a full-fledged emergency shelter to help residents find safety during natural disasters like earthquakes, fires and flooding.

The home of the San Mateo County Fair has proven to be a vital resource during the pandemic and other times of need, and officials said the renovations will help make the facility more useful and resilient in the future. The San Mateo-based Samaritan House will receive some of the funds to upgrade the kitchen and pantry areas.

"The Event Center and Samaritan House have proven themselves as invaluable partners over and over again during times of crisis that we have faced, as well as in non-emergency times," said County Executive Mile Callagy. "This grant, coupled with the matching funds allocated by the Board of Supervisors, lets us become even more resilient to keep our community protected."

The state funds are courtesy of the California Department of Food and Agriculture's effort to improve fairgrounds across the Golden State, adding to $4 million from the county and $1 million from the event center. The facility is already a designated Emergency Operations Center, and the planned upgrades will expand the critical services it can provide.

Key upgrades include plans to:

• Build 20 new restroom stalls and nine showers.
• Update broadband and back-up Internet.
• Update Fiesta Hall, the primary shelter site for up to 600 people.
• Relocate and update RV sites with solar canopies.
• Potentially expand Samaritan House’s year-round food services by adding a 6,700 square foot commercial kitchen and renovating the 14,000 square foot Redwood Hall into dining space that can serve up to 2,000 meals daily.
• Upgrade to current seismic standards.

Officials said improving the facility's emergency ability aligns with the state's broader goal of preparing to handle more disasters related to climate change, pointing to wildfires, flooding and other severe hazards in recent years, along with the continuing risk for earthquakes and landslides.

"As it becomes clearer and clearer that climate change impacts are more frequent and severe, this resiliency grant is a timely investment in infrastructure, both during times of crisis and in order to sustain our most vulnerable families right now," said District 2 Supervisor Noelia Corzo.

Samaritan House plans to serve meals to people in need year-round at the facility and believes it can nearly double its ability to do so within a year of the project's completion. Construction is scheduled to begin in June.