City Council
October 18, 2022
AGENDA REPORT
TO: Edward D. Reiskin FROM: Estelle Clemons
City Administrator Interim Director, Human
Services Department
SUBJECT: 66th Ave. RV Safe Parking Program
Professional Services Agreement
DATE: October 3, 2022
City Administrator Approval Date:
RECOMMENDATION
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt A Resolution Awarding A Professional Services Agreement To Urban Alchemy In An Amount Not To Exceed One Million Two Hundred Nine Thousand Three Hundred Seventy Five Dollars ($1,209,375) For The Operation Of A 75 Space Recreational Vehicle (RV) Safe Parking Site At The City-Owned Property At 796 66th Avenue For An Eight Month Term To Commence Upon The Completion Of Construction At The Site And Making Appropriate Findings Under The California Environmental Quality Act
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The proposed legislation authorizes the City Administrator to enter into an agreement with Urban Alchemy to operate a sliding scale RV Safe Parking site at the city-owned lot at 796 66th Avenue. Urban Alchemy is a social enterprise, dedicated to utilizing the skills of marginalized and formerly incarcerated people to positively impact urban areas facing issues related to poverty, homelessness and blight. The 66th Avenue RV Safe Parking (RVSP) site will serve 75 RV-dweller households; providing safe parking, hygiene services, and connection to other services including: health care, and light case management for the program participants.
BACKGROUND / LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
The City of Oakland has experienced a 47 percent increase in its homeless population based on Persons Point-In-Time (PIT) Count between 2017 and 2019. The PIT Count conducted in early 2022 showed an increase in Oakland’s homeless population of nearly 20 percent over 2019’s numbers. The majority of these individuals live in encampments, vehicles, and places not meant for human habitation. Additionally, the 2022 PIT Count 27% of the 3,337 unsheltered individuals counted in Oakland were living in Recreational Vehicles (RVs); an increase of five percentage points above the 2019 numbers.
Current data and trends suggest that number is expected to be significantly higher into 2022 and beyond. The rise in people living in RVs parked on Oakland streets is attributable to the Oct 6, 2022
Edward D. Reiskin, City Administrator
Subject: 66th Ave RV Safe Parking Program
Date: October 3, 2022 Page 2
City Council
October 18, 2022
current housing crisis in the City. Many Oakland residents living in RVs endure unsafe and unsanitary conditions due to lack of facilities and resources available to those living in vehicles.
The city-owned vacant lot located at 796 66th Avenue has been identified to hold a new RV Safe Parking program. Recreational vehicles are currently not permitted for residential occupancy in the City of Oakland Code except in mobile home parks and on designated property owned or leased by the City during a declared shelter crisis. A program at 796 66th Avenue will allow 75 households to safely park and receive essential needs.
For the past several years, the Council has provided funding to Urban Alchemy to provide mobile hygiene services, in the form of mobile showers at multiple sites. They were selected for this work through the City’s RFQ process. Their record of service has been impeccable and the number of sites that they service has recently increased due to their service record and efficacy.
ANALYSIS AND POLICY ALTERNATIVES
The City of Oakland has been funding managed RV sites since 2019 and currently serves approximately 120 RVs at one time across three sites. These programs collectively serve an estimated 240 people (estimated 2 per RV) who would otherwise park their RVs at various locations throughout the City. The proposed program at 66th Ave will eventually more than double the RV Safe Parking capacity. In fiscal year 22/23 the site will add an additional 75 spaces (approximately 150 people) and will allow participants to park their RV for extended periods in a secure City-sanctioned facility with sanitation and security services. This program will review the income of all participants requiring a percentage of income be paid. Participants will not be excluded from the program due to lack of income. The program and funding will be assessed at 6-months will a goal to increase the site to 126 spaces and extend the time frame.
RV Safe Parking programs support the citywide priorities of holistic community safety and housing, economic, and cultural security. RVSP programs, like this one, are just one component of a comprehensive strategy to end homelessness in Oakland. Unlike Community Cabins, homeless shelters, and transitional housing programs, these programs target those who are already living in their RVs on Oakland streets. For the 22% of Oakland’s unsheltered population that live in an RV, these programs serve as a way of allowing self-choice and dignity while preserving their current housing and providing humane access to safety and sanitation.
If this legislation is not adopted, then 75 households living in RVs will continue to live in their RVs on Oakland’s streets. These households will be subject to the hazards of living on city streets and will continue to have challenges complying with city laws.
FISCAL IMPACT
Last fiscal year, the Council allocated $1.7 million in HHAP-3 funds for this effort to cover the construction costs for the 66th Ave RV Safe Parking Program. Additionally, during the budget amendment process for fiscal year 2022-2023, an estimated $2.7 million for services and operations were detailed as being needed to contract out to a service provider to run the program for one year. The operations cost was based on the current per RV stall estimate for existing sites of $21,250 per year. However, the Council’s midcycle amendments adopted on Edward D. Reiskin, City Administrator
Subject: 66th Ave RV Safe Parking Program
Date: October 3, 2022 Page 3
City Council
October 18, 2022
June 30, 2022, added a total of $1,102,536 in funds to cover operations for this fiscal year. See Table 1 that follows.
Table 1
Updated Budget Estimates
Since adoption of the FY 2022-23 Budget, the Human Services Department (HSD) has worked closely with the City Administrator’s Office and the Office of Public Works to develop updated cost estimates for the site preparation and services needed to implement the 66th Ave RV Safe Parking Program.
The current estimated cost to the City to construct the site is $1,658,676. The City will contract with Sustainable Urban Neighborhoods (SUN) for the construction because they have served as the General Contractor for several interventions and donate project management costs as an in- kind donation. The in-kind donation for this site from SUN equals $63,000. SUN also negotiated the donation of $9,148 in base supplies. Also, the architectural design work is also donated by Mike Pyatok Associates at a total of $40,500, bringing the total donated construction and site prep costs to over $110,000. SUN is a certified Small Local Business Enterprise (SLBE) and will seek other certified SLBE’s to subcontract out various parts of the contract to ensure local hiring and investment. Construction should take 45 days to complete once contract documents and site plans are finalized.
This will allow for the unspent portion of funds from the original approved $1,765,525 M in HHAP 3 to be allocated towards the remaining Services and Operations Budget. Additionally, services costs for FY 2022-2023 will be reduced for a pro-rated, 8-month contract. In order to fund the remaining balance needed for the services and operations component of the project, HSD has identified funds through the carryforward process. The department will use unforeseen underspend in ESG-CV, a federal grant with strict spending requirements, and shift eligible costs previously allocated to HHAP 3. This budget shift between funds will create savings in HHAP 3 to cover eligible costs identified for the 66th Ave Program. See Table 2 below.
Table 2
Updated Budget HHAP 3 Measure Q GPF Total
Site prep (OPW) 1,658,676 - - 1,658,676
Services & Operations* 663,125 146,250 400,000 1,209,375 Total 2,321,801 146,250 400,000 2,868,051
* Based on 8-month contract due to construction timeline. Updated annual cost for services is estimated at $2.7M for 12 months for an 126 slot site.
The 66th Avenue RV Safe Parking will be supported by various funding sources including the State of California Other Fund (2159), Community Housing Services Organization (78411), HHAP Round 3 FY2023 - 2025 (Project 1006326), Homeless Services and Support (Program FY 2022-2023 Adopted Services & Operations Budget
HHAP 3 (Project 1006326) 556,276 Measure Q (Project 1005349) 146,250 GPF (Project 1006324) 400,000 Total 1,102,526
Edward D. Reiskin, City Administrator
Subject: 66th Ave RV Safe Parking Program
Date: October 3, 2022 Page 4
City Council
October 18, 2022
NB41); the OPR Preservation, Litter Reduction, Homelessness Support Act Measure Q Fund (2244), MEASQ HOMELESS (Project 1005349); and General Purpose Fund (1010), and Encampment Resolution Funds (Project 1006324).
At 6-months into the project the program design will be re-evaluated. Human Services will continue to seek funding options to maintain this program and appreciates the continued support of the City Council to ensure this project can continue beyond its first term.
PUBLIC OUTREACH / INTEREST
No additional public outreach was deemed necessary for this report, other than the standard posting on the City’s website.
COORDINATION
Coordination has occurred between the Human Services Department, Office of the City Attorney, Budget Bureau, City Administrator’s Office and the At Large City Council Office in preparation of this report and resolution.
PAST PERFORMANCE, EVALUATION AND FOLLOW-UP
In Fiscal Year 2021-2022:
165 individuals were served in the RV Safe Parking sites including 81 (49 percent) who were chronically homeless
132 clients self-reported a physical or mental health condition at the time of program entry.
29% percent of participants identified as Black or African-American and 57% identified as white
11 of 30 exits were to positive housing destinations.
SUSTAINABLE OPPORTUNITIES
Economic: This program will provide interim services to prevent, address, and end homelessness.
Environmental: This program will decrease the number of recreational vehicles parked on the City of Oakland’s arterial, collector, and residential streets, which will assist with street cleaning city-wide.
Race & Equity: In the City of Oakland, the African-American population is approximately 23% and is disproportionately represented as approximately 60% of the homeless community, due to long standing structurally racist practices such as red lining and employment discrimination, have lost their homes. Ending homelessness in Oakland must be defined by what works for African Americans first and foremost in Edward D. Reiskin, City Administrator
Subject: 66th Ave RV Safe Parking Program
Date: October 3, 2022 Page 5
City Council
October 18, 2022
order to reduce the racial disparities. These drivers of homelessness include:
Structural racism
Insufficient controls on the rental housing market that create vulnerability and housing instability for tenants
Insufficient housing units that are affordable to households with the lowest incomes, including particularly those whose incomes are below 20 percent of Area Median Income (AMI)
Systematic barriers that often prevent residents who are returning home from incarceration from living with family members and/or accessing both public and private rental housing and employment opportunities
RV Safe Parking programs as a whole have an underrepresentation of African-American clients within the City of Oakland. The total percentage of African-Americans participating in all of the City’s RVSP programs is roughly 27% or 44 African-American clients out of a total of 165 clients; this despite the fact that nearly three-fourths of the homeless population in the City of Oakland is comprised of African-Americans. This underrepresentation of African-Americans at RVSP programs can be mitigated or solved by working collaboratively with providers to ensure that the impediments to participation are identified and that new RVSPs are designed in ways that increase African-American participation in order to promote greater levels of racial equity within this particular intervention.
CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT (CEQA)
The RV Safe Parking Site, including the actions authorized under this Resolution and the operation and administration of the proposed RV Safe Parking Site, is exempt from additional review and analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act of 1970 (Public Resources Code section 21000 et seq.; CEQA) and the CEQA Guidelines (Cal. Code Regs., title 14, section 15000 et seq.; “CEQA Guidelines”) under CEQA Guidelines section 15303, “New Construction of Conversion of Small Structures,” which exempts the construction of limited numbers of new structures or facilities, and/or CEQA Guidelines section 15304, “Minor Alterations to Land,” which exempts minor alterations in the condition of public land, including temporary uses, and/or CEQA Guidelines section 15311, “Accessory Structures,” which exempts the construction of minor structures appurtenant to existing facilities, and/or CEQA Guidelines section 15332, “In Fill Development Projects,” which exempts projects characterized as in fill development meeting certain specified.
Edward D. Reiskin, City Administrator
Subject: 66th Ave RV Safe Parking Program
Date: October 3, 2022 Page 6
City Council
October 18, 2022
ACTION REQUESTED OF THE CITY COUNCIL
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt A Resolution Awarding A Professional Services Agreement To Urban Alchemy In An Amount Not To Exceed One Million Two Hundred Nine Thousand Three Hundred Seventy Five Dollars ($1,209,375) For The Operation Of A 75 Space Recreational Vehicle (RV) Safe Parking Site At The City-Owned Property At 796 66 th Avenue For An Eight Month Term To Commence Upon The Completion Of Construction At The Site And Making Appropriate Findings Under The California Environmental Quality Act
For questions regarding this report, please contact C’Mone Falls, Acting Manager Community Homelessness Services, at 510-238-6186
Respectfully submitted,
ESTELLE CLEMONS
Interim Director, Human Services Department
Reviewed by:
C’Mone Falls, Acting Manager
Community Homelessness Services Division
Prepared by:
Michael L. Johnson, Program Analyst
Community Homelessness Services Division