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Police and city inspections department notified homeless people like Jesse Franklin, who lives in a homeless camp off Murrow Boulevard, that he must vacate the premises in photos taken in Greensboro on Jan. 27, 2016.

As the chill of fall takes hold and the cold grip of winter awaits, the nights are growing longer and harsher.

And the most immediate need for the city’s homeless is a roof over their heads and a warm place to sleep.

So the City Council was right on Monday to approve an immediate solution: small, temporary units called “pallet houses” that can accommodate two persons apiece and provide such basic necessities as heat (or air conditioning), storage space and beds.

In a special session the council voted to spend $535,000 to buy 40 of the two-person, 64-square-foot units. As the News & Record’s Kenwyn Caranna reported, the council also agreed to provide a safe overnight parking area for people who live in their cars.

Neither is a long-term answer to homelessness in Greensboro. But at least they’re a start.

When a man is dying of thirst what he needs most is a glass of water. He’ll be happy to talk to you about digging a well or finding a new place to live, close to a stream or a lake … later.

Critics of the plan do make a good point when they press for other, more lasting ways to address not just the symptoms of homelessness but the roots as well.

The lone council member to vote against the pallet house plan, Zack Matheny, wonders why the city can’t consider using empty big-box stores as a housing option. It’s a fair question. But how quickly could property be acquired, and at what price? What would be the cost of upfitting and security? And what would be the impact on neighboring businesses?

Without providing many specifics, Matheny seemed convinced that it’s a workable alternative.

“There are plenty of big-box stores that have bathrooms and have lots of space that I think we can utilize for a lot less money,” he said.

Maybe. Maybe not. Let’s find out.

Among speakers at the meeting who opposed the pallet houses, some suggested that the city would be better off renting hotel space as temporary housing.

But the city’s director of Neighborhood Development, Michelle Kennedy, noted that Guilford County spent $800,000 during the early stages of the COVID outbreak to rent hotel rooms for homeless persons. That’s nearly $300,000 more than the one-time cost to buy the 40 pallet houses. And roughly $500,000 more than the estimated cost of a safe parking area, including security and toilet facilities.

As for more lasting answers to the plight of our homeless neighbors, the Regency Inn & Suites on O. Henry Boulevard was supposed to provide one. The city loaned a local nonprofit, Partnership Homes, $3 million toward remodeling the motel into housing for the homeless. But the motel thus far has been used only as an emergency shelter. That’s disappointing.

Even more disappointing is Guilford County’s rejection of Partnership Homes’ request for $6.5 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding to fill the remaining expense of remodeling. This raises questions as to why the county said no. And whether the city’s loan to the nonprofit was the right move.

The Regency Inn project grew out of a promising idea to provide housing and support services in the same location. Now there’s some doubt as to whether that will happen.

Finally, at least hints of a lingering rift between the city and the Guilford County Continuum of Care surfaced Monday.

The countywide coalition of business and nonprofits was established to help the homeless, but when a a pair of speakers from the floor on Monday asked whether the city had touched based with that group, Kennedy was not moved.

“There comes a time … where we can meet and plan the next meeting or we can act,” Kennedy said. “And we’re at a place that we need to act.”

She’s right. There have been enough conversations.

To be sure, none of this will be easy. A number of bigger problems have converged to create the homelessness crisis here and in other cities: Poverty. Drug addiction. Mental illness. And a desperate need for more affordable housing.

So, while the pallet houses and safe parking are far from panaceas, they are hopeful beginnings. And only part of what should be a broader strategy.

Now on to the next steps, including vetting the safety of the pallet houses and finding a suitable location (no small task).

And then exploring other, longer-term strategies.

For years, the city has talked a good game about the homelessness issue. Now it needs to act.

As Kennedy said: “There comes a time when you have to rip the Band-Aid off and do something.”

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Police and city inspections department notified homeless people like Jesse Franklin, who lives in a homeless camp off Murrow Boulevard, that he must vacate the premises in photos taken in Greensboro on Jan. 27, 2016.

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