Drop lockers established for storing, donating

Jun 20, 2023

CHICO — Harbor by Luxer One and The Chico Homeless Union have joined forces to bring public drop lockers to Chico.

Harbor by Luxer One has set up drop lockers in seven locations around Chico. The lockers are around the size of a refrigerator. People can donate warm clothes, gloves, blankets, nonperishable foods and hand warmers to help the homeless during the winter months. People who need to store their personal items can also use the lockers for storage.

"My team and I have started this beta project with the Chico Homeless Union. We are using some of our new public storage lockers as donation drop-off zones for anyone to donate their winter items to the homeless," said Harbor Luxer One marketing representative James Mitchell.

Mitchell and his team were approached by the Chico Homeless Union to start the project.

In order to use the lockers, which come in three sizes, people who want to store or donate items must access the Droplocker Public Locker app, which opens and locks the individual lockers. Once utilized, the person storing can open and close the locker from there.

Donald Fredenburg, who started Chico Homeless Union, clears out the lockers to distribute items to the homeless.

The best place to drop off items is at a locker outside of ABC Market at 715 W. Ninth St. This locker is free to use. The smart lockers are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

"It's kind of like a vending machine," Tucker said.

There has not been a problem with theft so far. The lockers have sturdy locks.

"We want to help the underserved and make the community better," said Van Tucker, vice president of Partnerships for Harbor Luxer One.

The lockers were installed recently.

"We started test markets in Chico and deployed seven lockers throughout the city. We have big dreams," said Tucker. "We want to make it convenient."

Tucker said people don't often feel safe approaching homeless camps.

"Individuals feel unsafe going to the homeless camps. So we have a a middle point where the community can help the homeless. We disperse items to those in need," said Tucker.

The lockers are made of strong metal. Currently the company has installed 8,500 lockers throughout the United States. The company hopes to establish 25,000 lockers over the next two years. The lockers are placed at apartment buildings, offices and outside of stores.

"We openly started seeking more organizations to help the Chico community," said Tucker. "We disperse the goods from a central spot in Chico. We would like to have more awareness of the program."

The drop boxes are available all year long. They are most important during the winter months.

"We want to have as much awareness as we can during the winter months," Tucker said.

The location at 715 W. Ninth St. outside of ABC Market doesn't charge, but the other locations require people storing items to pay $1.

The other drop locker locations are at City Liquor Market located at 3028 The Esplanade, Suite A, Tacos Mary at 429 Ivy St., Parkside Taphouse at 115 W. Third St., Ray's Liquor at 207 Walnut St., Blue Oval gas station at 1025 Nord Ave. and Wine Cellar at 958 East Ave., Suite D.

More information can be found at www.harborlockers.com. Drop Locker can be found on Instagram under droplockerapp.

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