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C. 89
To: Board of Supervisors
From: FAMILY & HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE
Date: December  10, 2019
The Seal of Contra Costa County, CA
Contra
Costa
County
Subject: Continuum of Care Plan for the Homeless
APPROVE OTHER
RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE
Action of Board On:   12/10/2019
APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER
Clerks Notes:

VOTE OF SUPERVISORS

AYE:
John Gioia, District I Supervisor
Candace Andersen, District II Supervisor
Diane Burgis, District III Supervisor
Karen Mitchoff, District IV Supervisor
Federal D. Glover, District V Supervisor
Contact: Julie DiMaggio Enea (925) 335-1077
cc: Continuum of Care Planning and Policy Manager     CAO-Muni Svcs Deputy    
I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED:     December  10, 2019
David Twa,
 
BY: , Deputy

 

RECOMMENDATION(S):

ACCEPT report prepared by the Health Services Department on the effort to end homelessness and on the activities of Contra Costa Council on Homelessness, and DIRECT the Health Services Department to provide an annual status update to the Family and Human Services Committee.

FISCAL IMPACT:

There is no fiscal impact. This is an informational report.

BACKGROUND:

On November 2014, the Board approved “Forging Ahead Towards Preventing and Ending Homelessness: An Update to Contra Costa’s 2004 Strategic Plan”, that renewed the County's 2004 plan with the latest data, best practices, and community feedback and reaffirmed the County's commitment to the Housing First approach. As such, “Forging Ahead” establishes this guiding principle:  
BACKGROUND: (CONT'D)
      
    “Homelessness is first a housing issue, and necessary supports and services are critical to help people remain housed. Our system must be nimble and flexible enough to respond through shared responsibility, accountability, and transparency of the community.”
      
    The Strategic Plan Update identifies two goals: 1) Decrease the length of time people experience homelessness by focusing on providing Permanent Housing and Services and; 2) Decrease the percentage of people who become homeless by providing Prevention activities. To achieve these goals, three strategies emerged:  
      
    1. Implement a coordinated entry/assessment system to streamline access to housing and services while addressing barriers, getting the right resources to the right people at the right time;
    2. Use best, promising , and most effective practices to give the consumer the best possible experience through the strategic use of resources; and
    3. Develop the most effective platforms to provide access, support advocacy, and connect to the community about homelessness and available resources.
    The Homeless Program of the Health, Housing and Homeless Services Division partners with the Homeless Advisory Board and Continuum of Care to develop and carry out an annual action plan that identifies the objectives and benchmarks related to each of the goals and strategies of Forging Ahead. Further, the Homeless Program incorporates the strategic plan goals into its own delivery system of comprehensive services, interim housing and permanent supportive housing as well as contracting with community agencies to provide additional homeless services and housing with the goal of ending homelessness in our community.  
      
    At the previous report to FHS one year ago, Jaime Jenett, HSD Continuum of Care Planning and Policy Manager, presented a data summary of the 2018 Point In Time Count of the homeless population and described the Built for Zero Campaign and the recent addition of warming centers, which targeted veterans and the chronically homeless. Supervisor Gioia asked for a status of the Richmond housing site and expressed frustration over the lack of progress. He requested of staff that future statistical reports detail the number of people who actually received permanent housing. Supervisor Andersen praised the work of staff and suggested the 211 resource as a way to connect the homeless to needed services. She also suggested having the Youth Action Council work on engaging more youth.  
      
    The attached Homeless Continuum of Care Report for 2018 and supporting documents were presented by Jaime Jenett to the FHS Committee on November 13, 2019. Supervisor Gioia stressed that we are in a crisis situation and should not become complacent. He observed that Contra Costa County frequently gets overlooked for HUD funding in favor of counties with large cities. He asked staff to research opportunities to work with builders to obtain discounts for homeless housing projects. Supervisor Andersen commented that San Francisco is leasing housing in East Contra Costa County to house some of its homeless population, thereby exacerbating Contra Costa's problem.   
      
    The Committee accepted the report and acknowledged that homelessness will be a topic scheduled for discussion at the Board retreat in 2020.  

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