Sonoma County supervisors OK dramatic shift on homelessness

Sonoma County's Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved $900,000 to launch a sweeping overhaul of its policies on homelessness, backing an approach that provides the homeless with immediate housing before linking them with social services such as substance abuse counseling and mental health treatment.|

Sonoma County's Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved $900,000 to launch a sweeping overhaul of its policies on homelessness, backing an approach that provides the homeless with immediate housing before linking them with social services such as substance abuse counseling and mental health treatment.

The nationally acclaimed strategy, known as 'housing-first,' has been in place for more than a decade in larger cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York. The shift comes at a time when nearly 10,000 people a year in Sonoma County experience homelessness, a rate four times the national average.

A recent Sonoma County analysis portrays a homeless population that is less healthy and on the streets for longer periods of time than ever before in Sonoma County's history.

At current rental rates, a single person earning minimum wage doesn't make enough money to pay for housing. Homeless shelters are packed every night, and people are sleeping in doorways, along creek paths, in parks — anywhere they can find refuge.

'The most difficult part of my job every day comes in the evening, when I have to tell so many people, 'I'm sorry, we're full,' ' said Rich Sundahl, who oversees the men's shelter program at the Redwood Gospel Mission. 'The same thing happens with the women's shelter.'

Using demographic data comparing annual income with the cost of housing and transportation each month, county officials calculated that the housing market in Sonoma County is worse than in major cities with national reputations for housing shortages.

'Sonoma County has particular challenges that have made it more difficult for us to do any kind of homelessness housing,' said Jenny Abramson, who coordinates the county's homelessness policies. 'The vacancy rate for existing housing is about 1 percent; there hasn't been a lot of new development; and rents are being driven up faster than anywhere else in the nation.'

T o address the problem, the county would need to build or acquire 4,128 permanent supportive housing units for nearly $560 million, according to the county analysis. About $1.5 million is available this year in two funds, but much of that is allocated to current programs.

Permanent supportive housing is credited as being the most effective at reducing homelessness while saving municipal and county governments millions of dollars a year. Estimates show that supportive housing costs Sonoma County an average of $31 a day per person, while residential substance abuse centers come in at $76 a day, detox centers are nearly $120 a day, and the cost per day in the crowded jail is $340.

'We know better now what our needs are,' Abramson said, noting the county developed the plan using current homeless counts and other demographic and housing data.

The new assessment was sparked in January, when the county heeded calls from advocates and voted to let homeless people sleep in their vehicles at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds to get out of the cold. A seemingly invisible population was revealed.

'We learned that a lot of people were seeking services at Catholic Charities that we hadn't identified in our system,' said Mark Krug, a community development manager for the Sonoma County Community Development Commission, which helped develop the new homelessness policy. 'We saw so many more people who were in need.'

Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to fund three new programs.

The first, with $150,000 in one-time funds, expands the parking program from 33 spaces at four sites in Santa Rosa and Sebastopol. Supervisors approved 50 new spots at various sites throughout the county, to be run by Catholic Charities.

Supervisors also approved a pilot program backed with $250,000 from the general fund to create a homeless outreach team, a group of workers who will engage the homeless population to identify needs, enroll them in services and place them in housing. A new county employee would be hired to oversee the team.

A third program would set aside $500,000 for emergency shelters, transitional housing, homelessness prevention and rapid rehousing.

'We are in such a dire situation,' said Supervisor Shirlee Zane, who drove creation of the programs in the beginning of the year. 'We're working on some short-term solutions with scattered safe parking, and the homeless outreach team, but we need to look at what we don't have, and that's affordable housing.'

Supervisors said Tuesday's action is the first step to address a procession of problems Sonoma County residents face. Next month, the board will discuss affordable housing and expanding the outreach team's coverage area.

'Today is a glaring reminder that this is a tale of two counties,' Supervisor Efren Carrillo said. 'On one hand, we have incredible beauty and incredible wealth, and on the other hand, we have significant income disparities.'

More than 20 homeless people and advocates addressed county supervisors and staff Tuesday, identifying multiple needs ranging from sanitation facilities, to talking to homeless people to help craft new policy, to creating potential housing sites on vacant land.

'Let's not kid ourselves, this is not a problem that is going away,' said Charlene Love, a former caregiver who can no longer work because of chronic pain.

Love, who is homeless, volunteers with Homeless Action, a nonprofit agency that organizes picnics and other events throughout the county to engage homeless people who are seeking services.

Speaking to supervisors, Love said, 'I am calling on you, on business leaders, private property owners and our clergymen to all sit down with us to determine how we are going to solve this problem.'

You can reach Staff Writer Angela Hart at 526-8503 or angela.hart@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ahartreports.

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