The Oneonta warming station reopened Nov. 1, offering a safe, warm place for people to stay overnight during the cold weather months.
Located at 291 Chestnut St., the station, run by Catholic Charities of Delaware, Otsego and Schoharie Counties, offers 10 beds on a first come, first serve basis seven days a week. It is next to the Oneonta Veterans Club.
It opens at 5:30 p.m. and closes at 7:30 a.m. If somebody comes in and decides not to stay for the night, the bed can be reopened for someone else at a later point that night to keep the beds full. The warming station will remain in operation throughout the code blue season until March 31.
“In Oneonta, we absolutely filled the ten beds most nights when the weather is cold,” Stacy Osborn, the director for the warming stations in Otsego and Schoharie counties, said Friday, Nov. 21. “When we see a rise in temperature, we see a decline in requests for beds.”
If the station is out of beds or somebody is not seeking shelter overnight, people are still able to come inside, get a cup of coffee and warm up. Osborn said under Code Blue regulations, people can be accommodated into some local hotels as they are available, outside of the warming station, if the station is full. If the weather is not under Code Blue guidelines, then those additional resources would not be available through state funding, Osborn said.
When temperature and wind chill is less than 32 degrees, Code Blue goes into effect, under state regulations. According to the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services website, local social services districts are required by law to take certain steps to ensure unhoused people have access to shelter.
During the day, when the shelter is not open, Osborn said she suggests people seeking warmth make appointments with service providers for medical care or contact agencies that provide housing assistance. She added that over the course of the night, warming station staff encourage individuals to access essential resources.
“Often, people have been living in a homeless environment for some time, so often they are well aware of what resources are available to them and often have a plan for their where day where they spend their time,” Osborn said.
Osborn said referrals are typically to agencies like Catholic Charities, Opportunities for Otsego, the county Department of Social Services and Otsego Rural Housing Assistance.
The Otsego warming station provided 1,339 bed nights to 105 people during the 2024 to 2025 Code Blue season, Osborn added.
The warming station in Schoharie County is at the United Methodist Church in Warnerville at 1615 state Route 7.
“Anytime the county building or our office is closed, or the buses don’t run, we stay open there,” Osborn said. “Unlike Oneonta, there are fewer places for people to go in this area.”
At the warming station, nonperishable, shelf stable food options are available for people, including warm beverages, the ability to shower and laundry access. According to the Catholic Charities website, the station is accepting donations of bottled water, juice boxes, deodorant, paper products, instant oatmeal, warm socks and laundry detergent, among others.
“The reality is, in the climate that we live in, not having adequate housing or shelter at night is potentially deadly for many of our people,” Osborn said. “The reality is that providing people somewhere safe and warm to stay does prevent loss of life, it prevents significant injury from frostbite and gives people a place to know that they are safe and welcome and that they can get resources that they need.”