ESCONDIDO—The public hearing on the proposed unaccompanied youth shelter has been rescheduled for Oct. 15 after the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) asked for an extension.
The hearing will take place at the regularly scheduled City Council meeting in City Hall at 4:30 p.m.
The public hearing was originally scheduled for Sept. 10 but officials from the ACLU asked for more time.
According to a news release on the city’s website, officials from the ACLU asked that the meeting to be postponed so they could submit additional materials and provide city officials time for review.
The Planning Commission denied the proposed shelter in June after a large public outcry was heard.
The shelter was proposed by a nonprofit organization, Southwest Key.
The 96-bed facility would have been open in a vacant nursing home located on Avenida del Diablo.
The ACLU is appealing the Planning Commission’s denial, because the effects of the shelter would be indistinguishable from the nursing home, according to David Loy, legal director of the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties.
The issue has gained national attention and sparked tensions in the city.
