Businesses, nonprofits and religious institutions can now apply for a permit to operate an extreme weather shelter this winter.
Louisville’s Office of Planning released details on the permitting process and online application form this week. Interested businesses and institutions will be required to submit floor plans and evacuation plans and agree to an inspection, among other things.
The goal is to avoid confusion and reduce some of the red tape that has stymied help for people experiencing homelessness. Last year, the city shut down an emergency winter shelter at The StrEatery Food Hall in south Louisville and issued a violation notice to the owner. As a result, Metro Council asked planning officials in September to loosen restrictions and create a clearer permitting process.
In a one-page brief released this week, the city clarified that facilities offering free shelter during extreme weather events can apply for this new permit.
“The facility may include supportive services, including meals and social, educational, or health services,” the brief states. “The facility must be staffed by employees or volunteers that manage operations.”
The owner of the business or institution must submit an application to Metro’s Construction Review Division to get a permit. The application asks for a project description, maximum number of occupants and total square footage of the shelter space.
Applicants must submit a Life Safety Plan, which the city defines as “floor plan, drawn to scale with dimensions, showing all areas used for sheltering” and the location of entrances, exits, smoke detectors and emergency evacuation routes.
Louisville Metro also provides a list of questions potential applicants should consider:
- Do you have an evacuation plan for emergencies? Are doors and windows functional? Is it on the first floor?
- Are there multiple entry/exit points?
- Are smoke detectors, fire alarms or a sprinkler system present?
- Is the space free of mold, rodents and insects?
- Will food be prepared, provided or delivered?
Applicants are required to take the Louisville Fire Department’s Crowd Manager Training Program.
Under this new process, the city will review all applications and provide a permit once the area is deemed safe. There will be an inspection after set-up but before the emergency shelter opens its doors.
A business or institution with an extreme weather shelter permit is allowed to house people 24 hours before and after an extreme weather event, which is when the wind chill drops below 35 degrees or the heat index reaches 95 degrees.
The new rules approved by Metro Council earlier this year allow these types of temporary shelters to operate in most districts zoned for commercial and office-residential districts.
Anyone with questions about whether their property meets the zoning requirements can call the Office of Planning at (502) 574-6230. The application for an extreme weather shelter permit is available online.
