Life Enrichment Committee
January 14, 2025
AGENDA REPORT
TO: Jestin D. Johnson FROM: LaTonda Simmons
City Administrator Assistant City Administrator
SUBJECT: FY 24-25 CHS Increased
Homelessness Support and Safety
Training
DATE: December 18, 2024
City Administrator Approval Date:
RECOMMENDATION
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt A Resolution:
1. Amending Resolution No. 90420 To:
a. Waive The Local/Small Local Business Enterprise (L/SLBE) Requirement For The Professional Services Agreement Awarded To PAVE Prevention, Inc. For Safety Training; And
b. Increase The Grant Award To East Oakland Community Project By $205,000 In State Of California Homeless, For A Total Amount Not To Exceed $380,737 From August 1, 2024 Through July 31, 2025, For Transitional Housing And Supportive Services For Transition Age Youth; And
2. Amending Resolution 90288 To Change A Recipient Of A State Of California Family Homelessness Challenge Grant In An Amount Not To Exceed $369,815 From “Courageous Women Association” To “Change To Come”, Subject to State Approval; And
3. Awarding A Grant To Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing Program In An Amount Not To Exceed $3,000,000 In HHAP Funding From January 1, 2025 Through June 30, 2027, For Operating And Supportive Services For A Transitional Housing Program Serving Transition Age Youth; And
4. Making Appropriate California Environmental Quality Act Findings.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Adoption of this proposed resolution would authorize the City Administrator to increase the amount granted to East Oakland Community Project (EOCP) for their Our House program, which serves unsheltered transition age youth ages 18-25.
Jestin Johnson (Dec 26, 2024 12:11 PST)
Dec 26, 2024
Jestin D. Johnson, City Administrator
Subject: FY 24-25 CHS Increased Homelessness Support and Safety Training Date: December 18, 2024 Page 2
Life Enrichment Committee
January 14, 2025
This resolution will also authorize the City Administrator to provide a Family Homelessness Challenge grant to Change to Come to provide transitional housing and supportive services to families experiencing homelessness. The provider initially selected, Courageous Women Association, is no longer able to participate.
Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing Program has already been awarded a Rapid Response Homeless Housing (R2H2) grant for the acquisition and rehabilitation of Friendly Manor as interim housing serving transition age youth to be located at 2298 San Pablo Avenue in Oakland. This proposed resolution will provide funding for program services.
PAVE Prevention, Inc., a well-respected leader in customized safety and de-escalation training, was awarded a contract of $50,000 by Resolution 90420 C.M.S. Adoption of this proposed resolution would allow staff to proceed with the contracting process.
BACKGROUND / LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
Homelessness has been, and continues to be, a crisis throughout California, with Oakland being the most impacted City in Alameda County. Oakland residents are regularly displaced from their homes to the streets of the city and need urgent support. As of the most recent 2024 point-in-time (PIT) count numbers, the number of homeless persons in Oakland increased nine percent over 2022 to 5,485. Of those counted, 3,659 (67%) are living without shelter. The homelessness problem affects Oakland's population disproportionately; a majority of the unsheltered identify as Black or African American, while Black and African American households are a minority in the City’s overall population.
East Oakland Community Project
East Oakland Community Project operates their Our House transitional housing program for transition age young adults at a City-owned property located at 3824 West Street. EOCP has operated the program at that location since 2015. Funding for the program in recent years has come from U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department ( HUD)Continuum of Care (CoC) monies. Each HUD CoC program award goes through two competitive processes, one at the Alameda County level and one at the federal level. The program is consistently awarded CoC funding. City Council recently authorized a grant of $175,737 through Resolution 90420 C.M.S.
However, this funding is not sufficient to adequately support the program. With the recent HHAP-5 award to the City, $155,000 has been identified for this program.
Change to Come
Change to Come is a community benefit organization which provides transitional housing and supportive services for people committed to recovery and maintaining a life of sobriety. They were previously awarded a direct community grant of $44,375 for FY 23-24 to provide temporary low-income housing. The City’s proposal to the State for the second round of Family Homelessness Challenge (FHC) awards requested funding to scale up and expand the successful strategies implemented by the City through the FHC-1 grant. Part of that strategy included selecting a service provider that was not one of the City’s FHC-1 grantees. Staff researched several nascent agencies and decided on Courageous Women Association.
Unfortunately, they have chosen not to participate. Change to Come is a similarly sized organization that will add four units of transitional housing to the City’s family homelessness services system. Funding in a not to exceed the amount of $369,815 that was awarded to Jestin D. Johnson, City Administrator
Subject: FY 24-25 CHS Increased Homelessness Support and Safety Training Date: December 18, 2024 Page 3
Life Enrichment Committee
January 14, 2025
Courageous Women Association through Resolution 90288 C.M.S. is available to award to Change to Come.
Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing Program
Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing Program is a community benefit organization which provides transitional housing for folks experiencing homelessness. In 2017, they purchased the Mitchell Hotel building on International Boulevard and converted the 40-unit hotel into a transitional housing program to house formerly incarcerated homeless men. Residents are accepted through referrals, and upon admission into the program, residents receive three meals a day, case management services, employment assistance, and placement, assistance with securing ID’s and social security cards, and general pro social skills. With the purchase of the Friendly Manor building, Kingdom Builders will expand their programming to include transition age youth.
PAVE Prevention, Inc.
Pursuant to City Council Resolution No. 90420 C.M.S., PAVE Prevention was awarded a contract in an amount not to exceed $50,000 for safety training for those who work in the field with unsheltered folks. PAVE Prevention, Inc. is based in Chicago, and a L/SLBE waiver was not included in the resolution. The waiver is needed because the agency is neither small or local. PAVE is a leader in the field of providing customized training focused on enhancing individual resilience and driving systemic change to cultivate a culture of safety and harmony.
Their human safety and de-escalation training has been used by Alameda County, the Oakland Fire Department (MACRO), and the Oakland Parks, Recreation, and Youth Development Department.
ANALYSIS AND POLICY ALTERNATIVES
In 2024, the City saw its rapid rates of homelessness slow. The PIT count noted an increase of nine percent unsheltered since the 2022 count (the 2022 count saw a nearly 25 percent increase over 2019). The slower rate of increase demonstrates the positive impacts and points of program design and partnership success. With 5,490 unhoused residents residing in Oakland out of a county-wide total of 9,747, statistics highlight the need for high-quality, permanent exits from homelessness as a priority.
Transitional housing programs are a key component of Oakland’s strategy to addressing homelessness. They offer a stable environment where unsheltered folks can focus on improving their health, obtaining employment, and securing permanent housing.
East Oakland Community Project receives some funding for their Our House program through a HUD CoC grant. The funding is not enough to adequately support this program. Additional HHAP-5 funding has recently been identified. The fiscal year is nearly half over, therefore making this grant especially time sensitive.
The work of the new provider to the Family Homelessness Challenge was intended to begin on July 1, 2024. We learned late that Courageous Women Association was not able to participate in this program. Time is of the essence in executing a grant agreement with Change to Come in order for them to begin serving unhoused families utilizing Family Homelessness Challenge grant funds.
Jestin D. Johnson, City Administrator
Subject: FY 24-25 CHS Increased Homelessness Support and Safety Training Date: December 18, 2024 Page 4
Life Enrichment Committee
January 14, 2025
Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing Program has been awarded a Rapid Response Homeless Housing (R2H2) grant for the acquisition and rehabilitation of Friendly Manor as interim housing serving transition age youth to be located at 2298 San Pablo Avenue in Oakland. Funding for this project would be provided under the City’s R2H2 program pursuant to City Council Resolution No. 89977 C.M.S. Community Homelessness Services (CHS) has also budgeted $3,000,000 in HHAP-4 funding for this project.
This proposed resolution will advance the Citywide Housing, Economic, and Cultural Security priority by increasing the number of clean, dignified shelter beds accessible to the homeless community in Oakland. Participants in this program will continue to benefit from the support in a program where case management, housing navigation, and other support services are available.
FISCAL IMPACT
The proposed resolution would authorize the appropriation and expenditure of funds as described in Table 1 below.
Table 1
Grantee Funding Source Not to Exceed
Amount
Grant Term
EOCP
HHAP-5
Measure Q
$155,000
$50,000
July 1, 2024 – June 30,
2025
Change to Come (in
place of Courageous
Women Association)
FHC-2
$369,815
January 1, 2025 – June 30,
2026
Kingdom Builders
Transitional Housing
Program
HHAP-4
$3,000,000
January 1, 2025 – June 30,
2027
HHAP-5 funds are appropriated through the State of California Fund (2159), Community Housing Services Organization (78411), HHAP Round 5 Project (1007402), and Homeless Services & Support Program (NB41).
Family Homelessness Challenge Round 2 funds are appropriated through the State of California Fund (2159), Community Housing Services Organization (78411), FHC-2 Project (1007551), and Homeless Services & Support Program (NB41).
HHAP-4 funds are appropriated through the State of California Fund (2159), Community Housing Services Organization (78411), HHAP Round 4 Project (1006961), and Homeless Services & Support Program (NB41).
PUBLIC OUTREACH / INTEREST
No outreach was necessary for the proposed policy action beyond the standard City Council Jestin D. Johnson, City Administrator
Subject: FY 24-25 CHS Increased Homelessness Support and Safety Training Date: December 18, 2024 Page 5
Life Enrichment Committee
January 14, 2025
agenda noticing procedures.
COORDINATION
The Human Services Department, Housing and Community Development Department, and the Office of the City Attorney have reviewed this report and legislation.
PAST PERFORMANCE, EVALUATION AND FOLLOW-UP
East Oakland Community Project operates the Our House program, along with Covenant House California, as part of the CoC-funded Oakland Homeless Youth Housing Collaborative (OHYHC). This program has consistently been awarded CoC funding dating back until at least 2015. In early 2024, rats began entering the facility at 3824 West Street that EOCP uses for this program. A sewer issue was found to be the cause, and the facility had to be evacuated.
Staff and participants were relocated to a temporary location that also City-owned and was being used by EOCP for another City-funded program. The City is also seeking to amend EOCP’s OHYHC grant agreement to add funds that will be used, in part, to make the needed repairs. Program participants will return to the West Street location once the repairs are complete.
In FY 2022 – 2023, for all Family Homelessness projects, approximately 80% of participants had positive housing outcomes, and 84% of adult participants had at least one source of income at program exit.
Table 2
Providers continue to support residents with robust housing stabilization plans, which include intake and assessments, case management, and comprehensive services such as employment assistance and health insurance enrollment. In March 2024, the City of Oakland hosted the first session of the monthly Housing Support Lab, which is a collaborative, working meeting for direct service staff to meet, review data and outcomes, and discuss program challenges.
Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing Program has been serving the homeless population since 2009. They own several single-family homes, a building in East Oakland, and have recently acquired a building in downtown Oakland that was previously owned by Volunteers of America. They are committed to caring for some of the most vulnerable members of our community.
Jestin D. Johnson, City Administrator
Subject: FY 24-25 CHS Increased Homelessness Support and Safety Training Date: December 18, 2024 Page 6
Life Enrichment Committee
January 14, 2025
CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT (CEQA)
The Kingdom Builders grant will support rehabilitation of a 26-unit Single Room Occupancy building. City staff have determined the activities funded by the grant to be exempt from environmental review pursuant to CEQA guidelines Section 15301 (Existing Facilities), Section 15302 (Minor Reconstruction), Section 15304 (Minor Alterations to Land), Section 15194 (Affordable Housing Streamlining), Section 15332 (Infill Development Projects), and/or Government Code section 8698.4(a)(4).
SUSTAINABLE OPPORTUNITIES
Economic: All funds proposed in this report will provide interim housing and services to prevent, address, and end homelessness.
Environmental: The provision of housing and services for homeless persons is intended to address the environmental degradation caused by homeless families and individuals precariously housed or living on the streets and will support cleaner and safer city streets.
Race & Equity: In Oakland, the drivers of homelessness fall most squarely on the backs of the African American community who, due to long standing structurally racist practices such as red lining and employment discrimination, are most vulnerable to losing their homes. According to the 2022 Point In Time count for Oakland, 60 percent of the population experiencing homelessness in Oakland identifies as Black or African American; however, this demographic is only 23 percent of the general population. Ending homelessness in Oakland must be defined by what works for African Americans first and foremost in order to reduce the racial disparities. The 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
• Inadequate pay and benefits for many of the jobs that are available in the community, and insufficient access to quality employment opportunities that pay wages that meet the cost of housing
One of the goals of CHS is to eliminate racial disparities and the rates at which African Americans experience homelessness, as well as their exit to stable housing. The City utilizes data from the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) to track client demographics and outcomes. The programs and services recommended for funding in this report serve a majority of African American clients. Rates of exits to permanent housing among African American clients are proportionate to their representation in the programs’ population.
Jestin D. Johnson, City Administrator
Subject: FY 24-25 CHS Increased Homelessness Support and Safety Training Date: December 18, 2024 Page 7
Life Enrichment Committee
January 14, 2025
ACTION REQUESTED OF THE CITY COUNCIL
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt A Resolution:
1. Amending Resolution No. 90420 To:
a. Waive The Local/Small Local Business Enterprise (L/SLBE) Requirement For The Professional Services Agreement Awarded To PAVE Prevention, Inc. For Safety Training; And
b. Increase The Grant Award To East Oakland Community Project By $205,000 In State Of California Homeless, For A Total Amount Not To Exceed $380,737 From August 1, 2024 Through July 31, 2025, For Transitional Housing And Supportive Services For Transition Age Youth; And
2. Amending Resolution 90288 To Change A Recipient Of A State Of California Family Homelessness Challenge Grant In An Amount Not To Exceed $369,815 From “Courageous Women Association” To “Change To Come”, Subject to State Approval; And
3. Awarding A Grant To Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing Program In An Amount Not To Exceed $3,000,000 In HHAP Funding From January 1, 2025 Through June 30, 2027, For Operating And Supportive Services For A Transitional Housing Program Serving Transition Age Youth; And
4. Making Appropriate California Environmental Quality Act Findings.
For questions regarding this report, please contact Chrissie Love, Acting Program Planner, at 510.238.7492.
Respectfully submitted,
LATONDA SIMMONS
Assistant City Administrator
Prepared by:
Chrissie Love, Acting Program Planner
Community Homelessness Services
LaTonda Simmons (Dec 26, 2024 10:16 PST)