Title
Recommendation to Authorize the Interim City Manager, or Designee, to Execute a One Year Agreement with The Village of Love Foundation to Provide Homeless Outreach Team Services for Alameda's Homeless Population in an Amount Not to Exceed $150,000. (Community Development Department 10061833)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Alameda (City) serves its unhoused population on the streets through a “Homeless Outreach Team.” The need for mobile homeless outreach is present and growing as Alamedans continue to be adversely affected by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the February 2022 Point-In-Time count, the City has 264 homeless individuals, up from 231 in 2019, of which 68% (180) were unsheltered. Staff recommends the continuation of the Homeless Outreach Team services and recommends that The Village of Love Foundation (VOLF) be engaged as the provider. Staff recommends that City Council authorize the Acting Interim City Manager, or designee, to execute a one-year agreement beginning October 1, 2022 and continuing to September 30, 2023 with VOLF for an amount not to exceed $150,000 for the Homeless Outreach Team services.
BACKGROUND
Staff issued a request for proposal (RFP) in May 2022 for the continuation of Homeless Outreach Team services. Two providers returned applications - The Village of Love Foundation (VOLF) and Operation Dignity (OD). Staff evaluated both proposals, interviewed both organizations, and has identified VOLF as the stronger candidate.
OD is the existing Homeless Outreach Team services provider in Alameda. OD’s extended contract with the City will expire on September 30, 2022. During Fiscal Year (FY) 2021-22, OD struggled to keep the program staffed and as a result services in the City were diminished. VOLF has demonstrated their ability to hire, train and retain staff through their existing contracts with the City through which it provides Day Center and Safe Parking services.
VOLF is an active collaborator in the City’s service provider community. VOLF has demonstrated a clear understanding of mobile outreach work based on their experiences in the cities of Alameda, Oakland and Berkeley. VOLF has been playing and continues to play a critical role in the creation of a pipeline from homelessness to supportive housing solutions for the City’s unhoused population.
DISCUSSION
Housing shortages, high rents, and the increase in the cost of goods and services contribute to homelessness in our region. The economic downturn brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation rates and the phasing out of eviction moratorium policies has further exacerbated the issue. Support for individuals and families experiencing homelessness or at-risk of becoming homeless is needed. Engaging VOLF to provide Homeless Outreach Team services is essential to the City. As emergency and transitional housing opportunities are further developed within the community, having a culturally competent and compassionate mobile outreach provider in place becomes critical to serving unsheltered individuals and families and helping them successfully transition from the streets to a supportive, sheltered environment.
The RFP issued by staff in May of 2022 called for a Homeless Outreach Team to:
• Staff a two, full time, person team,
• Deliver services with a harm reduction approach,
• Link individuals and families to services,
• Provide office-based and street-based case management,
• Complete housing preparation work,
• Support City clean ups,
• Outreach to individuals living on the street, and
• Coordinate and cooperate with ongoing services and providers.
VOLF proposes to create a continuum of care, moving individuals from the street to their Day Center and Safe Parking programs, then onto housing options developed by the City and City-funded partners. Staff recommends that the City Council authorize the Acting Interim City Manager, or designee, to execute a contract, as described above, with VOLF to provide Homeless Outreach Team services for Alameda’s homeless population.
ALTERNATIVES
• Authorize the Acting Interim City Manager, or designee, to execute a one-year contract with VOLF to provide Homeless Outreach Team services from October 1, 2022 to September 30, 2023.
• Direct staff to select a different service provide than VOLF.
• Deny authorization of the contract.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The funding for this contract is budgeted in FY 2022-23 in the General Fund - Homelessness program (10061833). No additional budget appropriations are required. No overhead expenses for VOLF are shown in Exhibit B, as they are covered within other existing contracts with the City.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
This action is consistent with the Social Services 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.”
Homeless Outreach Team funding will help some of the most vulnerable in our community with the consequences of climate change. Mobile outreach workers may be deployed to reach and help unsheltered individuals in order to connect them to services and other assistance.
RECOMMENDATION
Authorize the Acting Interim City Manager, or designee, to execute a one-year agreement with The Village of Love Foundation (VOLF) to provide Homeless Outreach Team services for Alameda's homeless population in an amount not to exceed $150,000.
Respectfully submitted,
Lisa Maxwell, Community Development Director
By,
Marcie Johnson, Social Services Manager
Lois Butler, Economic Development Manager
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Margaret O’Brien, Finance Director
Exhibit:
1. Contract
cc: Nancy Bronstein, Interim City Manager