COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

Inter-Departmental Correspondence

Board of Supervisors

DATE:

January 31, 2005

BOARD MEETING DATE:

February 8, 2005

TO:

Honorable Board of Supervisors

FROM:

Supervisors Mark Church and Jerry Hill

SUBJECT:

10-Year Plan to End Homelessness in San Mateo County

Recommendation

A. Adopt a Resolution in support of developing a San Mateo County Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness.

B. Establish a Board Subcommittee comprised of Supervisors Church and Hill to examine the issue of homelessness and work on developing a Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness including reports back to the Board of Supervisors on the plan’s progress.

Background

On any given day, approximately 1,400 people are homeless in San Mateo County with an annual count totaling 4,500 people. Many struggle with the high cost of living and can’t afford to pay rental prices that are the highest in the nation. Others struggle with mental and/or alcohol and other drug dependency and can’t get the help that they need to attain self-sufficiency.

The issue of homelessness is, for the most part, vastly hidden from the public and lost in the forage of other matters of concern. The faces of homelessness are not like urban cities where individuals panhandle for money and sleep on the streets. In San Mateo County, the faces of homelessness are largely unseen: single employed mothers living out of cars with their children, families who recently lost their home due to layoffs or catastrophic health issues, or emancipated youth from the foster care system. Regarding the emancipated youth, statistics indicate that 50% end up homeless within the first two years of leaving the system.

That is unacceptable at all levels and the issue of homelessness is a matter which needs careful and considerate attention.

Over the last couple of years, we have worked in various capacities, individually and collectively, to assist the County’s efforts in combating homelessness. Supervisor Hill participated in the initial development of Safe Harbor and he also serves on a local board that administers Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) and Emergency Housing Assistance Programs (EHAP) funds. Last year, Supervisor Church lobbied for federal funding for supportive services for homelessness and affordable housing during a legislative trip to Washington D.C. and met with members of the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Interagency Council on Homelessness. He also has provided leadership to the San Mateo County Homeless Continuum of Care for the past four years.

Together, we have helped secure $1 million in Proposition 46 Emergency Housing Assistance funds for remodeling the Safe Harbor shelter facility in order to improve the year-round operations and provide for onsite support services. We have also been working with staff in pulling together background information on the proposed ten-year plan to end homelessness.

Proposal

There is a national effort underway to establish a ten-year plan to end homelessness, which is gaining notoriety and attention in cities and counties throughout the nation. The model is already in place in cities like Philadelphia and New York and has witnessed varying degrees of success. Locally, San Francisco and Contra Costa County instituted their plans in 2004 and Alameda County is in process of developing such a plan. It is time for San Mateo County to join in that effort.

San Mateo County has made major accomplishments with regard to managing homelessness:

• the Continuum of Care, which annually brings in approximately $5 million for homeless housing and services

• The year-round Safe Harbor Shelter facility that offers shelter plus multiple on site services

• The Housing Plus Program, which adds 20 new permanent housing units for chronically homeless persons

• The construction of the Belmont Apartments, a 25-unit permanent supportive housing project that will serve homeless people with mental illness

• The creation of Catherine’s Center, a six bed facility serving women being released from jail and prison

• Shelter Network’s new First Step for Families transitional housing facility, more than doubling the site’s former capacity from 18 families to 39 families

However, a more collaborative effort that involves providers, clients and stakeholders from the public and private sectors would expand and enrich our efforts.

The resolution included for adoption would establish the County of San Mateo’s commitment to end homelessness and the subcommittee would not only help develop the plan but also assist in recruiting those stakeholders whose input is necessary for seeing this plan through its various stages of development and implementation.

The subcommittee will also need to further the efforts in educating the public about the impact that homelessness has on the community as a whole, and provide regular updates to the Board on the plan’s development.