Title
Recommendation to Authorize the City Manager to Execute Documents, Agreements and Modifications with The Village of Love Foundation to Operate the Day Center and Safe Sheltering Program for Two Years from September 1, 2023 to August 31, 2025 for Up to $2,176,096 with Funding from Homeless Housing Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) Program and General Fund. (City Manager 10021833)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Jennifer Ott, City Manager
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Village of Love Foundation (VOL) currently operates the Day Center services and Safe Sheltering Program for the City of Alameda (City). The VOL programming is provided year-round, seven days a week and includes:
• Day Center services (Day Center);
• A 12-bed Emergency Overnight Shelter (Emergency Overnight Shelter);
• 25 car or van Safe Parking services (Safe Parking); and
• Monitoring and support of five beds located in four trailers (Safe Sheltering).
VOL’s Day Center services provide Alameda’s unhoused and under housed populations access to a safe, staffed place to eat, use bathroom facilities, do laundry, and receive resources and services indoors in a dignified manner nearly 24 hours a day. The Day Center closes for one hour per day when a thorough cleaning is done. Staff is recommending that the City Council authorize the City Manager to execute two contracts with the VOL to continue to operate and provide the Day Center, Emergency Overnight Shelter, Safe Parking, and Safe Sheltering services (collectively referred to as the Day Center and Safe Sheltering Program) through two funding sources. Executing the agreements for the programs under two agreements, as described below, allows the City to observe fiscal reporting requirements of the County of Alameda.
First, staff recommends execution of an agreement with VOL in the amount of $338,198, with funding from the Homeless Housing Assistance and Prevention Program (HHAP) ($213,747 HHAP Round 3 and $124,451 HHAP Round 4) and funding from the General Fund ($13,818), to operate Day Center Services for four months from September 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023. This agreement is attached as Exhibit 1.
Secondly, staff recommends execution of an agreement with VOL in the amount of $1,824,080, with funding from the General Fund to operate Day Center Services for 20 months from January 1, 2024 to August 31, 2025. This agreement is attached as Exhibit 2.
The total budget, including $1,837,898 from the General Fund, is included in the City Council approved FY 2023-25 budget.
BACKGROUND
VOL currently provides programming and direct services to participants at the Day Center, Emergency Overnight Shelter, Safe Parking and Safe Sheltering at Alameda Point. VOL is a Black-led organization and employs direct service staff with lived experience. With this experience and empathy, VOL staff create impactful connections with unhoused people living in Alameda and has a strong record of service. VOL served a total of 444 unduplicated unhoused individuals from July 2020, when VOL began as the sub-contractor to deliver Day Program Services, to February 2023. VOL’s services and capacity to serve Alameda continues to grow with their award of the Homeless Outreach Team contract in Fiscal Year (FY) 2022-23 and their management of the four homes that comprise the Emergency Supportive Housing program.
Since the program inception in 2020, the services provided by VOL staff have evolved to include: Day Center, Emergency Overnight Shelter, Safe Parking, and Safe Sheltering. Descriptions of each of these four areas follows.
Day Center: The goal of the Day Center is to provide a safe, sanitary, secure and welcoming place for homeless individuals to relax, obtain information, connect to services, and be supported by staff and peers. The Day Center offers meals, showers, laundry, computers, phones charging, Wi-Fi, and access to health care and social services.
The Day Center acts as a hub for individuals experiencing homelessness. People with basic needs are routed to the Day Center and addressed by trained staff. Individuals in Alameda begin their interaction with human services at the Day Center. The initial interaction lays the foundation for development of relationships that will allow service staff to provide a high level of support and a pipeline of housing and social service resources to individuals arriving at the Day Center.
Emergency Overnight Shelter: Each evening, the Day Center space is converted into an emergency overnight shelter and up to 12 individuals can be accommodated overnight.
Safe Parking: The goal of the Safe Parking Program is to provide individuals experiencing homelessness, who are living in their cars and vans, a place to legally park their vehicles in a safe, secure, sanitary and welcoming environment. Safe Parking is located adjacent to the Day Center. There are 25 spots for working cars or vans to park. The lot is staffed 24/7 and individuals have access to the Day Center to use the bathroom, charge their mobile phone, etc. Safe Parking and Emergency Overnight Shelter clients are offered referrals and can access VOL staffing and services and are required to adhere to a code of conduct.
Safe Sheltering: Four trailers were acquired by the City during the COVID-19 pandemic. Initially purposed to serve unhoused individuals who were likely to become medically compromised if contracting the Coronavirus, the trailers are now used as five additional emergency shelter beds for individuals living on the streets of Alameda with preference given to those who are medically fragile. VOL provides places individuals into the homes, provides supportive services and conducts inspections and safety checks of the residents.
The services described above are collectively referred to as the Day Center Services and Safe Sheltering Program.
VOL works closely and collaboratively with the City’s newly formed Housing and Human Services Division staff in the City Manager’s Office (previously staffed within Community Development). Recent successes include moving a long-term encamped individual from a City park to transitional housing, coordinating with the mid-County Housing Resource Center to find, interview and enter every known and willing unhoused Alamedan into Alameda County’s Coordinated Entry System which ensures individuals the opportunity for placement into Dignity Village and other permanent housing, and playing a critical role in the management and reduction of the Main Street encampment in coordination with the Alameda Police Department and City staff. Day Center Services have grown to become the first step in the City’s continuum of care, offering fundamental basic services with an opportunity to connect with interim and transitional housing opportunities now available in the community. VOL responded to community needs by supplementing their case management and housing preparation work with much needed support groups, such as an unhoused support group and Narcotics Anonymous. VOL’s ability to train and retain staff speaks to their mission-based approach to the work and their commitment to improving their community-based services.
Day Center Services were allocated funding of $1,056,100 for FY 2023-24 and $1,119,412 for FY 2024-25. Safe Sheltering Services were allocated funding of $32,000 for FY 2023-24 and $34,000 for FY 2024-25.
DISCUSSION
Day Center services provides a physical and emotional hub that is safe, sanitary, secure and welcoming. Persons experiencing homelessness are able to relax, access critical information, connect with services, and be supported by trained VOL staff and peers. Day Center services include access to regular meals, bathrooms, laundry, computers, phone charging, Wi-Fi, and health care and social services. As of May 24, 2023, VOL staff is fully trained and in compliance with the County’s Homeless Management and Information System (HMIS). Day Center services offer unhoused individuals and families direct access to the Alameda County Coordinated Entry System (CES) through HMIS, which is the process to identify permanent housing solutions for people and families who are unhoused.
VOL successfully manages the Day Center and Safe Sheltering programs in a monitored, safe, secure, sanitary, and welcoming environment. Combined, these services represent the first step in Alameda’s continuum of care, moving people from the street into emergency shelter. Once individuals accept initial emergency services, VOL is able to work to place households directly into Emergency Supportive Housing, the four City-owned homes at Alameda Point which provide transitional supportive housing, or complete referrals to alternative services and entry into CES to transition people to permanent housing.
VOL has established strong, meaningful connections with individuals in Alameda’s unhoused population, which greatly enhances the services and housing placement. Staff recommends City Council approve entering into the two agreements with VOL to continue Day Center and Safe Sheltering Services through to August 31, 2025.
ALTERNATIVES
• Authorize the City Manager to execute related documents, agreements and modifications for up to $2,176,096 with the Village of Love Foundation to operate Day Center and Safe Sheltering Services for two years from September 1, 2023 through to August 31, 2025, with funding from Homeless Housing Assistance and Prevention Program and General Fund.
• Direct staff to reduce the amount of either agreement which will reduce or eliminate one or more of the proposed services.
• Direct staff to conduct a Request for Proposal process. Staff recommends continuing on a month to month basis with VOL during the process to ensure continuity of the programs.
• Terminate the VOL programs described in this report.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The VOL programs will be paid from budgeted funds as follows:
|
Budgeted Funds |
HHAP Amount |
General Fund Amount |
Total Budget Amount |
|
Day Center Services from September 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023 |
$338,198 |
$13,818 |
$352,016 |
|
Day Center & Safe Sheltering Services from January 1, 2024 to August 31, 2025 |
$0 |
$1,824,080 |
$1,824,080 |
Funding for the proposed agreement is included in the FY 2023-25 Biennial Budget approved by City Council in June 2023 (Resolution No. 16059). No additional appropriations are requested.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
This action is consistent with the Social Service Human Relations Board, Charter and Ordinance authority “to improve social services in the community” (Alameda Municipal Code Section 2-11.5) and the Report on Homelessness Policies and Programs.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This action does not constitute a “project” as defined in California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15378 and therefore no further CEQA analysis is required.
CLIMATE IMPACT
The Social Vulnerability Assessment section of the draft Climate Action and Resiliency Plan states:
“adaptation strategies should consider how [the homeless] will receive emergency communications and how they will be sheltered. Proper, safe housing for all is an adaptation and resilience strategy. Planning strategies should always consider these vulnerable populations in adaptation efforts.”
The Day Center Services and Safe Sheltering Program provides safe, warm, and welcoming places for the unhoused in Alameda while connecting them to health, mental health, and social service supports.
RECOMMENDATION
Authorize the City Manager to execute two agreements for up to $2,176,096 with The Village of Love Foundation to Operate Day Center and Safe Sheltering Services for two years from September 1, 2023 through to August 31, 2025, with funding from the HHAP Program and General Fund.
Respectfully submitted,
Amy Wooldridge, Assistant City Manager
By,
Marcie Johnson, Social Services Manager
Lisa Fitts, Community Development Manager
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Margaret O’Brien, Finance Director
Exhibits:
1. HHAP Agreement
2. General Fund Agreement