Oakland to Open Eco-Friendly Homeless Shelter

Crossroads, a 125-bed homeless facility, incorporates green building concepts to better serve its clients. Many homeless people have respiratory-related health problems and a green building will be healthier for them.

1 minute read

January 29, 2008, 5:00 AM PST

By maryereynolds


"Crossroads may be the only homeless shelter built green from the beginning. It has a solar-paneled roof, hydronic heating, ceiling fans, nontoxic paint, windows that can be opened for fresh air, and desks and bureaus made from pressed wheat. David Kears, the director of the Alameda County Health Care Services Agency explains, 'The building has to be healthy to make people healthy.' Wendy Jackson, executive director of the East Oakland Community Project, spent 10 years raising the $11 million for the new state-of-the-art facility."

Monday, January 28, 2008 in The New York Times

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