San Diego Convention Center migrant facility now taking in younger boys and girls

The San Diego Convention Center, which initially received teenage girls when it opened as a temporary facility for unaccompanied migrant children last month, is now also taking in younger boys and girls as well.

The younger children are ages 5 to 12, and some, but not all, are traveling with older teenage sisters. Siblings are being kept together at the downtown San Diego building, according to Carol Fiertz, spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, rather than separated by age and gender.

“Needs change,” Fiertz said on Monday afternoon.

The federal government asked San Diego officials for temporary use of the facility in March as part of the Biden administration’s efforts to expand the department’s capacity to hold migrant children in its custody after crossing the border. Children are supposed to be transferred to Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement within 72 hours, but many were staying in Border Patrol custody much longer.

Last month, Border Patrol agents apprehended more than 18,000 children, according to data from Customs and Border Protection.

Through most of March, the agency was bringing in more children in a day than it was able to transfer out. Recently, because of the expansion of temporary facilities like the convention center, the agency has been able to transfer more children to the Office of Refugee Resettlement in a day than it received into custody, according to data from Health and Human Services.

The Office of Refugee Resettlement is responsible for the children once they leave Border Patrol custody until they can be reunited with family or other sponsors around the country. So far, a teenage girl whose mother flew across the country to be with her after she was hospitalized, as reported by the New York Times, is the only child from the San Diego Convention Center to be released to family.

About 300 teenage girls were moved out of the convention center to make room for the younger children, Fiertz said. Just over 1,350 children were being held at the facility on Monday, with more expected to arrive late in the day to bring the number of kids up to the building’s planned capacity of 1,450.

Since local officials first announced that the San Diego Convention Center would be used by the federal government to temporarily house unaccompanied migrant children, many residents have been asking how they can help.

South Bay Community Services, which is one of the main contractors at the site, is requesting volunteers, particularly for entertainment activities for the youth held there. Volunteers can sign up on the organization’s website and will go through a background check that can take up to 72 hours for clearance, according to Devonna Almagro, spokeswoman for County Supervisor Nora Vargas’ office. San Diegans can also make monetary donations to the organization on its website and flag “Donation for Temporary Shelter at Convention Center” in the donation notes.

Jason Bercovitch of Rep. Scott Peters’ office said he is also helping to coordinate entertainment volunteers, as well as bulk item donations. He said that with the change in ages at the facility, the team responsible for the children is looking for duffle bags, plastic toys that are easy to clean, clothes for small children and diapers.

The County Office of Education is recruiting certified teachers via its website to volunteer at the center as well.