Opening of extra temporary walk-in facility for homeless people during cold weather period

12-22-2025

“For some time now, we have seen the number of vulnerable homeless people in the city increase. This also raises the number of people at shelter and walk-in facilities, such as Herstart on Nieuwegracht. That is why we are now opening an extra walk-in facility within walking distance at Hamburgerstraat 11,” says Rik van der Graaf, alderman for Social Shelter and Protected Living. The walk-in next to the Lutheran Church will be open on days when the winter night shelter on Savannahweg is also open.

The temporary walk-in is a collaboration between the Salvation Army, the Lutheran Church, the Augustinus Church, the Diaconate of Protestant Churches Utrecht, the Ubuntuhuis, Villa Vrede, Stichting Omduw and the Municipality of Utrecht. During the KWR, the walk-in is open every day from 10:00 to 16:00 and on Sundays from 12:00 to 16:00. Visitors can come by for a cup of coffee or tea, a chat or some rest.

Reinier Dijkstra, Regional Director Salvation Army Central Netherlands: “The number of people living on the street in Utrecht is increasing, and this becomes painfully visible especially in winter. More and more people spend (out of necessity) their days in the cold, right in the middle of our city. We cannot and do not want to let this happen. It is nice to see that with multiple partners we can now make this extra walk-in possible. Meanwhile, as the Salvation Army, we assume that structural solutions will come, so that in the future no one has to sleep on the street.”

Cold weather regulation
The cold weather regulation is an existing initiative of the four major municipalities. When the perceived temperature drops below 0 degrees or when the KNMI issues a ‘code red’, the GGDs of the four major cities jointly determine when the regulation starts. The aim of this humanitarian nightly emergency shelter is to prevent serious health damage that can occur when people sleep outside in cold or extreme weather.