Shepherd’s Gate, a women’s shelter on Sycamore Avenue in Brentwood, will soon be able to help more women in need following the 4-0 approval Tuesday night of an expansion to their existing facility. Councilmember Pa’tanisha Pierson recused herself from the discussion to “avoid the appearance of impropriety” due to interacting with Shepherd’s Gate sometimes in her role as an attorney.
This expansion was previously approved 4-0 by the Planning Commission in November.
The addition to the Shepherd’s Gate property would be another building that would comprise three housing units, a laundry room and pantry. A new parking area with three spaces and a trash enclosure would be constructed outside of the building for its residents.
Photo courtesy of Shepherd’s Gate
The current Shepherd’s Gate property.
“I think everyone knows who Shepherd’s Gate is in our community,” Shepherd’s Gate CEO Carol Patterson said following the presentation. “We are a long-term Christian program that provides healing from trauma – homelessness to addiction to domestic violence to trafficking – and several child protective services cases.”
Patterson said the additional building would allow Shepherd’s Gate to house 15 more individuals, half of whom would be children, and give them the opportunity to “work on their lives” as they transition from the free program back into society.
None of the funding for the project would come from the city, according to Patterson. The construction will be paid for by private donations.
Shepherd’s Gate’s mission statement is to provide for women and children, but state inclusionary laws do not allow language in the municipal code that would bar individuals from access to housing, according to Associate Planner Miguel Contreras, who presented the item. Echoing the discussion from November, it was determined that the organization’s conditional use permit, which specifies women and children, supersedes the text of the zoning ordinance.
Other topics discussed at the meeting included:
An update from Amy Tilley, the executive director of the Downtown Brentwood Coalition, on the progress the organization has made since its inception in 2021. The nonprofit is partnered with the city, which funds Tilley’s role. The current contract for that partnership ends on June 30, when the council and Tilley will discuss what comes next.
Multiple public comments at the start of the meeting from residents who felt that the proclamation adopted by the council at the Dec. 12 meeting did not do enough to condemn the conflict in Gaza. The Dec. 12 proclamation was in support of “peace in the Middle East and condemning Islamophobia,” rather than one calling on the federal government to demand a ceasefire. The council had initially discussed potentially calling for a ceasefire on the Gaza Strip in November, but opted not to proceed. Several who spoke told the council they would continue to attend meetings until the council took more decisive action against the killing of Palestinian children overseas.
A discussion of the process by which the Parks and Recreation Department approves special events, such as Oktoberfest, La Gran Fiesta and other similar events. The council discussed ideas, including differing costs for residents versus nonresidents, police presence and how to encourage organizers to use the city’s variety of parks since most opt to use City Park in downtown Brentwood. Further discussion is expected to occur at a later date after staff does more research.
