GREENFIELD — Despite warmer-than-average temperatures this past weekend, city officials and local groups are preparing for the colder months ahead, with advocates hoping to see more robust plans for overnight shelter this year than in the past.

At a recent City Council meeting, Mayor Roxann Wedegartner reported that Clinical Support & Options has identified capacity to add five more beds, with staffing, to the 40 they already have at the Wells Street shelter.

“They let us know that without proper funding, they couldn’t staff those additional five beds to the tune of $9,000 per bed,” she said. “That has to do with the 24-hour staffing situation. … Fortunately, through some re-purposing of [Community Development Block Grant] funds, we were able to come up with the $45,000 … to get those beds.”

In general, much of the city’s plans look similar to last year, according to the mayor, with places such as the Greenfield Public Library and John Zon Community Center open during business hours for people to use as a space to get warm.

Wedegartner noted that Salvation Army is currently running low on hotel vouchers, which should be replenished later in the winter, but remains open for showers and laundry services during regular daytime hours. She also said that given the Days Inn’s current status as an emergency shelter for the state, it’s unclear if the two rooms the city typically has for emergency use will be available.

Susan Worgaftik of Housing Greenfield told councilors at the same meeting that the local housing group has been speaking with the Interfaith Council of Franklin County about its plans for the winter, which includes working out an arrangement with the Red Roof Inn in South Deerfield.

Amy Clarke, who is a member of the Housing Assistance Committee of the Interfaith Council, said the Interfaith Council covered the cost of about 130 nights last year at the Days Inn on Colrain Road. This year, in the absence of the Days Inn as a shelter option, the Red Roof Inn offered a comparable rate to the Days Inn.

“It’s still not an accessible place,” Clarke said, noting that not everybody has their own transportation. “We’re still figuring out how we can transport people from Greenfield to the Red Roof on a cold night.”

Clarke also said the committee is working with the Travel Inn in Orange. In both cases, whether the motel can be used depends upon room availability on a particular night.

“Right now we’re very grateful to the Red Roof and the Travel Inn,” she said. “We’re wishing we had someplace in Greenfield that, just on the coldest nights, would be easy for people to walk to and stay.”

The committee has already bought tents and sleeping bags, she said. In past years, gift cards to Dunkin Donuts have been given to folks, offering them a place to buy a warm beverage and get out of the cold.

Worgaftik said Housing Greenfield also is considering the possibility of renting buses that could be parked to idle, allowing people to escape the cold.

“This is not as much a weekday issue as it is a weekend issue,” she said, inquiring as to whether there was the potential for the John Zon Community Center to open overnight or on the weekends during extreme cold weather events, provided staffing was available. “We’re not talking about every day, we’re talking about when it’s really cold. This is a crisis issue for us here.”

Precinct 5 City Councilor Marianne Bullock said with the “significant number” of eviction proceedings happening across the state, particularly in Franklin County, and with the anticipation for a colder winter than last year, she was worried the city would see an increase of families out in the cold.

“I’m concerned about the cold weather plan not looking different this year … I know there are those individuals who don’t feel comfortable or safe in a shelter, but in my experience families almost always want to be in shelter,” Bullock said. “As much as the options feel slim, I think there’s potentially an appetite from the state to waive some bylaws because of this state of emergency we’re currently seeing with housing, to allow things like churches to allow overnight warming centers.”

Wedegartner said she was willing to consult with the state Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities to see if those types of waivers were available.

“Part of the issue is always money for staffing and how we’ll staff them, and who is willing to step up and do it,” she said. “If we were to find out there was a pathway, an easier way to get whoever wants to step up, I think we’d be very happy to work on that.”

Reporter Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne.