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The public hearing will be held at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 4, in Auburn City Council chambers. Stephen Selvek, deputy director of the city's Department of Planning and Economic Development, recommended the hearing in a memo to the board because the homeless shelter proposal has been revised and due to the public interest in the project. 

Board members heard a summary of the revised plan at a meeting Tuesday. Jared Heinl, an engineer with Beardsley Architects and Engineers, said the strategy is similar to the initial application — that Housing Visions, a Syracuse-based organization, wants to build an 80-bed facility. There would be eight transitional housing units, down from nine in the original plan. 

The revised plan sought to address concerns raised about the proposed shelter, which would replace an existing 16-bed facility at 290-292 Grant Ave. The changes include a more compact structure that ensures delivery and emergency vehicles will be able to access the parking lot. A second vehicle entrance driveway has been added to the plan. 

There won't be exterior picnic tables or shade structures, Heinl said. Andy Tehan, a planning board member, asked if there would be an outside area where individuals staying at the homeless shelter could gather. Heinl explained it wasn't included "based on prior feedback that that was undesirable." However, there will be community spaces inside the facility. 

The board voted to set the June 4 public hearing and tabled the site plan review application. The latter motion was expected to allow more time to review the revisions. 

"The intent really is just to make sure the information is out there long enough to provide opportunity to review and to solicit feedback at that June meeting," Selvek said. 

The proposed homeless shelter received more attention in October when the Cayuga County Legislature voted to provide more than $1 million to support the project. 

At a city Planning Board meeting in December, the plan received mixed reviews. While there was support, several neighbors spoke out against the facility. Their concerns included that the project was too big for the property. 

An environmental review was launched while Housing Visions and local officials explored other options. One idea was to use the former Holy Family School on North Street, a property that Housing Visions is in the process of buying for a separate project. But the Auburn Zoning Board of Appeals rejected a use variance for the site, which is in a residential area. 

Proponents of the shelter say it's necessary because of the in Cayuga County. With limited options for housing, the Cayuga County Department of Social Services has been placing homeless individuals in local hotels.

The department, which assisted 455 adults and 175 children, said the hotel stays cost the county $3 million in 2023.