Agenda Report
Fullerton City Council
MEETING DATE: OCTOBER 18, 2022
TO: CITY COUNCIL / SUCCESSOR AGENCY
SUBMITTED BY: ERIC J. LEVITT, CITY MANAGER
PREPARED BY: DAISY PEREZ, DEPUTY CITY MANAGER
TAYLOR SAMUELSON, ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST II
SUBJECT: ONE-YEAR AGREEMENT WITH ILLUMINATION FOUNDATION FOR HOMELESS SHELTER SERVICES
SUMMARY
The City of Fullerton currently participates in various programs and initiatives to provide shelter solutions for our homeless population. Over the past several years, the City has worked with regional partners to shelter homeless individuals at the Buena Park and Placentia Navigation Centers. Staff continues to see demand for shelter beds among homeless residents, and both the Buena Park and Placentia centers have been at near full capacity for several months. The City has available funding allocated by the City Council from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) which has been encumbered towards the operation of the Illumination Foundation site. The City Manager’s office is proposing a one-year agreement to provide 20 shelter beds for Fullerton homeless individuals at $80.00 per day. There is sufficient funding from the ARPA allocation to cover these costs. Providing these beds will provide our homeless outreach case manager as well as our PD homeless liaison officers the ability to address homelessness more effectively in the community.
RECOMMENDATION
Direct City Manager to enter into a 12-month agreement with Illumination Foundation and execute any documents including the attached MOU associated with such agreement to provide for 20 beds guaranteed per night for one year at a cost of $80 per bed for a total cost of $584,000.
Amend Purchase Order #C000143 to include a new 12-month agreement at the identified rate of $80.00 per day.
CITY MANAGER REMARKS
The City Manager is proposing a one-year interim solution to increasing available beds for individuals who are homeless and to allow the City manage those impacts.
I recommend approval of the City Council of the proposed MOU with Illumination Foundation which would provide for 20 beds per night for $80 per bed at a cost of $584,000 for one year.
As an alternative the recommendation, in discussions with Illumination Foundation, we could sign an agreement for $85 for 10 beds per night at a minimum cost of $311,000 and additional costs of $95 per bed above the 10 beds.
Both alternatives would be a guarantee by the City for the minimum number of beds to be paid for by the City and in turn Illumination Foundation would agree to have those beds designated for individuals referred by City staff members.
PRIORITY POLICY STATEMENT
This item matches the following Priority Policy Statements:
Fiscal and Organizational Stability.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is currently $1,158,240 in available ARPA funds to cover the necessary beds for a one-year timeframe. Usage of funds is eligible under the expenditure categories of the grant and such expenditures would not impact the City’s general fund.
The proposed MOU would be for a cost of $584,000 for the year.
The alternative provided by the City Manager would be a minimum cost of $311,000 with potential for additional costs if more beds are reserved.
DISCUSSION
Background
As the City continues to address the homeless challenge within our community, there are opportunities to improve service and ensure that homeless individuals have access to available beds when they are contacted in the field. Over the past year, Staff has been working to link homeless individuals to shelter services including the Buena Park navigation center, Placentia navigation center, Bridges at Kramer (located in Anaheim), and other regional service providers, depending on individual needs and community connections. The City also participates in a regional effort known as the North Service Planning Area (North SPA) which is funded through grants from California HCD’s Permanent Local Housing Allocation (PLHA) program. Participating agencies pool resources to fund the Buena Park and Placentia shelters which have sheltered approximately 529 individuals in the past fiscal year. Furthermore, both shelters assisted 80 individuals to permanently exit to homelessness last year. Through the efforts of the City and its various partners, the annual Point in Time (PIT) count of homeless individuals for Fullerton demonstrated in a net reduction of 34% in unsheltered individuals. While these figures demonstrate that the efforts the City is undertaking are making an impact, Staff continues to see a pressing and emergent need for additional shelter beds to accommodate persistent homeless challenges.
Staff encounters situations in the field where a homeless individual is contacted but there are no available beds throughout the region, therefore an alternative is not available and engagement. The lack of shelter beds can delay providing services and result in persistent homelessness and associated impacts in parts of the community. The City continually seeks ways to manage the impacts of homelessness while complying with Federal Court determinations from Martin v. Boise which limits enforcement of illegal camping in public property under the auspices of Federal Judge David O. Carter.
Illumination Foundation History
In July of 2020, City Council authorized an operating agreement with Illumination Foundation to provide services at their center located at 3535 West Commonwealth. Council further authorized $500,000 in appropriations from the Housing Fund to be attributed to the shelter for tenant improvements. Furthermore, a Conditional Use Permit (ZON-2019-0131) was approved through resolution which allowed the shelter to operate within City limits. The conditional use permit specifically outlines that the facility does not allow walk-up clients and people experiencing homelessness can only enter the site if they were referred by a City approved provider. In December of 2021, the City entered into an agreement with Illumination Foundation to provide shelter bed services for Fullerton residents within our community. The agreement had a bed rate of $40.00 per day, and the agreement term expired in July of 2022. Illumination Foundation is now operating its facility primarily as a recuperative care site which addresses a broad range of needs for those within the homeless community, but the City no longer has an active contract with the organization. The site continues to serve homeless individuals to this day, but there are not any specific required available beds at the facility which can be made available for individuals in Fullerton when outreach occurs in the field.
Recommendation
Given the pressing need to address homelessness within the community and seeing as a need to identify additional beds is an emergent challenge. Staff is seeking a recommendation to enter into a one-year service agreement with Illumination Foundation. The current rate proposal for the agreement is an $80.00 per day rate for a total of 20 guaranteed beds within Fullerton for any homeless individuals which are referred by Staff specifically to the site.
By proactively engaging the homeless community, Staff can provide resources to get these individuals off the street while also remaining in line with determinations of federal court as well as ensuring the health and safety of our neighborhoods and residents.
Attachments:
Attachment 1 – PowerPoint Presentation
Attachment 2 – Draft MOU Agreement with Illumination Foundation Attachment 3 – Conditional Use Permit ZON-2019-0131
cc: City Manager Eric J. Levitt
Illumination Foundation Agreement
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