Throughout the last few months the area has been continually blasted by cold and brutal weather conditions, leaving many that are unhoused to require the emergency housing services of Code Blue.

With the worst of the cold months seemingly behind, officials have begun to analyze and discuss the program’s results from this past winter and get back to looking into upgrades to strengthen the program in the future.

Though Chautauqua County currently offers Code Blue services in north county, there is no solely dedicated building that offers sheltering such as the one in south county. This means that the only warming center locations are generously serviced by organizations, with only one organization that offers after hours emergency sheltering.

As a result of this, county officials and Code Blue organizers have long been pushing for a permanent location in the north. Now it seems, though still in the early planning stages, that these plans are finally seeing further progress now that the harsh conditions are not straining Code Blue as much.

“So just to clarify, we do have Code Blue in the north county. However, the Code Blue that we do have in the north county currently is (through) our hotels, motels,” said Hernandez. “We did have agencies reach out from Erie, from Buffalo, that were interested in Code Blue, but also interested in emergency hours.”

As a result of this peaking interest from other organizations that hope to see Code Blue services expanded, officials have begun to look into north county locations that would potentially be able to house such services. Hernandez personally toured both St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church in Fredonia and the Blessed Mary Angela, St. Hedwig site in Dunkirk. Both of these locations closed after a decision from the diocese in 2024, which attempted to address declining attendance nationwide. Hernandez stated that the new owner that has since acquired these locations is also an architect, and that this owner is eager to help officials get the ball rolling for these locations if it is feasible.

“I took a look at St. Hedwig’s and I took a look at St. Joseph’s. And it was just with the owner, the current owner, to see what is feasible and what is reasonable and what can really be done. But with that being said, due to the space that was toured and the location, there will be logistics that I will have to get worked out,” said Hernandez. “So right now we’re just in the planning phase and looking at the logistics.”

Currently in the timeline, Hernandez noted that officials are looking to begin seeking bids in partnership with the current owner, hopefully finally establishing a northern county Code Blue shelter.

The procedures in place for north county Code Blue currently see multiple rooms being held on-hand at motels and hotels around the area. While Hernandez noted that people are sometimes transported to services in south county, these rooms are always held and available if they are needed. Not only would a permanent shelter alleviate the cost of keeping these rooms on hand even when empty, but it would also provide safer and better services for those in the northern region.

“We did have contingencies in the north, where we were able to place and help everyone who came in. However, we do realize that there is a gap and we need to maximize, to make it more efficient,” said Hernandez. “Mother Nature is going to be Mother Nature, so we can never predict what Mother Nature is going to be. However, we did realize that this harsh winter made sure all of the resources were utilized.”