The Nichols Accounting Group, PC
Public Statement Regarding Proposed Homeless Shelter

We want the public to know that the Nichols Accounting Group has sympathy for the plight of
the homeless in our area. Our historical actions and community support are evidence of this.
We also believe that it is important to take any action necessary to protect our employees. This
time of year, our employees arrive early and leave late, and need to feel safe in doing so.
We employ almost 50 employees, many of whom work in our Ontario office and park within 50
feet of the proposed shelter. Several of our employees are women whose children accompany
them to work from time to time and often visit them during our busier time of year, which is right
now. We must do all that we can to protect those employees and their families.
We feel strongly that the City needs to take action to help the homeless population. This effort
should have begun last summer but our first knowledge of any discussion was in late
November. Was the delay a purposeful tactic to use the cold weather as a reason to point at an
emergency? The action they are now taking lacks a plan to protect our employees and the
homeless shelter residents. Additionally, it violates the City’s health and safety provisions of the
building code.
In order to resolve a City-wide problem, the City needs to involve the citizens, especially those
who live near special projects such as the current one. The city chose to cloak their intended
use of their property in secrecy and failed to give written public notice to neighboring businesses
and residents. The City has chosen to advance their agenda, instead of working with the
Citizens and our Firm.
On November 22nd, we met with the City Manager and representatives of a sponsoring
organization. It was our first knowledge of the intended shelter for this winter. During that hourlong meeting, they explained the intended shelter and we responded with a few concerns and
questions regarding the impact to our employees, clients and property. On November 26th we
attended the City Council meeting and objected to the selected location of the shelter. It was
immediately clear that the City Council had made up their mind on this site regardless of our
objections. We explained that we wanted to be involved in the decision-making process. We
expressed concerns that no plan had been presented that would ensure the homeless camp
would be a safe place for those residing there, and for those who work and live nearby. We
offered to be on a committee that would create safety rules for the protection of all. The City
instructed the sponsoring organizations to involve our firm in the discussions to create the
management plan for the shelter. Instead of allowing us to help, we received no further
communication until January 8th in an e mail that asked if we had any further concerns and
informed us that a contract had been signed and that the dwellings would soon be built.
We were assured that we would be part of the decision-making process; we were promised to
be informed; we were promised a plan that took into consideration the safety of all concerned. It
has become clear the City and the sponsoring organizations have not yet developed an
adequate plan. Communication that has occurred has been only recently and has had very
limited input from us or other neighboring property owners.
The City’s intentional efforts to avoid public scrutiny, the lack of adequate communication until
we raised the alarm, the lack of any communication on a plan as of yet, all point to the danger to
our staff, our clients, and neighboring property owners that this program presents. Based on

 this experience, we do not have faith that the City and sponsoring organizations have the
communication and management skills necessary to adequately manage the shelter.
Once we became aware of the construction design of the dwellings it was clear they do not
comply with the City’s building and zoning codes. First, the codes do not allow this type of
housing in a heavy industrial zone. Second, those codes require plumbing in all structures to be
used as a dwelling, and that such plumbing be hooked up to the City’s waste management
facilities. We understand the City will not be equipping these dwellings with plumbing and is
providing portable toilets. The hope seems to be the homeless residents will use the portable
toilets or go across the street and down a block to use restroom facilities located at a homeless
day shelter. This is similar to saying that I can build a house without plumbing because my
neighbor has a toilet that I can use.
The deficiency of the waste management facilities plan will cause health and safety issues. It
should not be allowed for the protection of the homeless residents, our employees, and
surrounding neighbors. If the City’s haphazard plan proceeds, it may cause a problem much
larger than currently faced.