Resident urges council to help fund winter warming center for unhoused residents

Jenny Davis, a London resident of more than 30 years, told the London City Council she has spent months organizing a volunteer task force to help unhoused residents and asked the council to help find funding and municipal support for a winter warming center.

Davis said three churches have expressed interest but are reviewing insurance and board approval. She said zoning applications — which she said require a fee per church and separate inspections by zoning and fire officials — and the costs of those steps are obstacles for the volunteer effort. "We currently have designated three churches that are interested in this possibility," Davis told the council. "They're checking things out with their boards and their insurance."

Davis described typical warming-center operations, saying centers usually open when temperatures dip below 20 degrees, provide dinner and morning meals, and operate mainly in December through February. She said other warming centers report opening roughly a dozen evenings each winter and emphasized the volunteer nature of the local effort and the need for city assistance on grants, block grants or other funding options.

Council members suggested pathways for follow-up. A council member invited Davis to bring the topic to the public service committee next Tuesday at 5 p.m., and another offered to accept written questions in advance so prospective providers can be better prepared for an in-person update.

The council did not take formal action at the meeting; Davis said she will follow up with council members and staff about funding sources and next steps.