Allegheny County shelter options to expand starting next week

People are silhouetted against Second Avenue Commons on Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2023, in Uptown. (Photo by Stephanie Strasburg/PublicSource) The county’s Department of Human Services is moving away from the Code Blue approach it took on cold days toward a dispersed portfolio of beds and services available every day. “PublicSource is an independent nonprofit newsroom serving the Pittsburgh region.& Sign up for our free newsletters.” by Eric Jankiewicz, PublicSource Allegheny County will reopen the central homeless shelter in Downtown Pittsburgh later this month, less than half a year after a fire led authorities to close Second Avenue Commons, officials announced while outlining winter shelter plans. The shelter includes 95 beds in group sleeping rooms, 43 single-room-occupancy units, emergency shelter space, an engagement center and a medical clinic. People who were staying there had to be relocated after the June fire and they will begin to move back in on Oct. 28. The engagement center is slated to reopen the next day with operations& from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.& The winter shelter plan will run between Nov. 15 and March 15, involving at least five providers across Pittsburgh working with the county to offer 105 supplemental beds for single adults, according...