Title
Adoption of Resolution Adopting the Plan to End Homelessness: 2018 Strategic Update Developed by EveryOne Home. (Community Development Department 267)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
EveryOne Home is the federally-designated Continuum of Care (CoC) serving Alameda County. As the CoC, EveryOne Home is responsible for planning, facilitating, and coordinating countywide efforts to end homelessness. To this end, EveryOne Home engages with various community stakeholders, including cities, to develop a plan that outlines the strategic goals to end homelessness in the region. In 2006 EveryOne Home developed a strategic plan (2016 Plan) to end homelessness countywide. The Plan to End Homelessness: 2018 Strategic Update (the 2018 Plan) is the revision to the 2006 Plan EveryOne Home developed more than a decade ago, which was approved by the City of Alameda (City) City Council on May 5, 2009.
Staff recommends that the City Council approve and adopt EveryOne Home’s 2018 Plan, which revises the 2006 Plan to end homelessness countywide. The 2018 Plan is attached as Exhibit 1.
BACKGROUND
EveryOne Home is the collective impact organization that addresses, and aims to end, homelessness in Alameda County, uniting the efforts of city and county government partners, nonprofit service providers, homeless consumers, and community members. In 2006, EveryOne Home released the original countywide strategic plan to end homelessness, which was subsequently adopted by the County Board of Supervisors and all 14 local government jurisdictions, including the City.
In 2018, EveryOne Home undertook a year-long inclusive community process to update the 2016 Plan to better reflect the current realities of the Bay Area’s housing market, identify resource needs, and set goals to tackle the homeless challenges in Alameda County. That effort resulted in the development of the 2018 Plan. EveryOne Home presented the 2018 Plan to the Social Service Human Relations Board (SSHRB) at its November 29, 2018 Special Meeting. On April 25, 2019, the SSHRB approved staff’s recommendation that the City Council adopt the Plan through a resolution.
DISCUSSION
The 2018 Plan provides an analysis of the countywide homelessness data to determine the extent of needs of the homeless across Alameda County and the size and cost of interventions to address those needs.
Some of the highlights of the 2018 Plan include:
• Over the course of a given year, more than 12,000 people experience homelessness in Alameda County. For every person who exits homelessness, two new people enter it. If trends continue, this rate will increase the homeless population by 1,500 annually.
• The homeless population is disproportionately African-American, reflecting ongoing equity disparities in housing markets and systemic social policies.
• The overarching goal of the report is to reduce the Alameda County’s homeless count. For the next five years, to 2023, reduce the number of people becoming homeless for the first time annually by 500, while simultaneously increasing the number of homeless people returning to permanent homes by 500 annually.
• The best way to address the crisis of unsheltered homelessness in Alameda County is not to build more shelter, but rather to reduce the number of people needing shelter by expanding affordable housing stock and increasing the system’s capacity to create a “flow” of people from the streets and into housing.
• The system must add 2,800 units of permanent supportive housing and another 4,000 subsidized permanent housing units dedicated to extremely low-income people experiencing homelessness to address Alameda County’s homelessness in a meaningful way.
• The report suggests that, “Government Agencies can ensure funding is aligned with strategies and redirect unspent resources to expand housing and prevention.”
The City’s 2017 Homelessness Report identifies programs and policies that are consistent with the EveryOne Home’s 2018 Plan. Input from community stakeholders on the possible uses of the City’s Homeless Emergency Aid Program allocation of $756,524 specifically identified coordinating efforts with Alameda County and other entities that are addressing homelessness issues. Therefore, staff recommends that the City Council adopt a resolution adopting the Plan developed by EveryOne Home, as recommended by the SSHRB.
ALTERNATIVES
• The City Council could approve and adopt the Plan to End Homelessness: 2018 Strategic Update Developed by EveryOne Home.
• The City Council could decide not to adopt the 2018 Plan. EveryOne Home’s goal is to have every local jurisdiction in Alameda County adopt the 2018 Plan to ensure a coordinated and unified approach to understanding and addressing homelessness throughout Alameda County. A decision not to adopt the 2018 Plan could jeopardize funding opportunities to address homelessness in the City in the future.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
There is no financial impact on the City.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
This action is consistent with the SSHRB Charter and Ordinance “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 is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15601(b)(3).
CLIMATE IMPACTS
There is no climate impact on the City.
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt a Resolution adopting the Plan to End Homelessness: 2018 Strategic Update developed by EveryOne Home.
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
The City Manager recommends adoption of the Plan to End Homelessness: 2018 Strategic Update.
Respectfully submitted,
Debbie Potter, Director, Base Reuse and Community Development Department
By,
Ana P. Bagtas, Community Development Analyst
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Elena Adair, Finance Director
Exhibit
1. Plan to End Homelessness: 2018 Strategic Plan Update
cc: Eric Levitt, City Manager