The Austin City Council approved the purchase of the former Salvation Army Downtown Shelter Friday, voting to pay $15 million and change for the property at 501 East Eighth Street. The purchase includes a retail storefront property at 718 Red River Street and a surface parking at 700 Red River Street.
The purchase will help fill the need for nearly 1,000 shelter beds for people experiencing homelessness by the end of 2025 — a gap the city's Homeless Strategy Division presented information to the council about in July 2023 — according to a city press release.
In May, the shelter announced it would have to close citing increased costs. The city would have lost about 10% of its emergency shelter capacity, and the only shelter accepting single women. The city's purchase of the “Sally” will ensure continued operation of 150 beds specifically for women and transgender people.
The shelter had maintained at least 130 shelter beds since opening in 1988 and was one of the few shelter spaces in the downtown area for people experiencing homelessness. The Salvation Army announced earlier this year that it would close the facility this spring and worked with the city to keep it open though it worked with the city to keep it open past the original March deadline to allow time for clients to be relocated. The City Council approved a 12-month lease agreement for the shelter — the only dedicated downtown space for single women experiencing homelessness — in June, as well as approving a contract with nonprofit Urban Alchemy to operate it.
Urban Alchemy, which also operates the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless downtown, will continue to operate the former Salvation Army shelter. It will have the capacity to serve 150 women, transgender, and special-needs individuals nightly, according to the city. The shelter is expected to be open by the end of the month.
