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1 Agenda Report
July 8, 2024
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: Department of Housing
THROUGH: Economic Development & Technology Committee (June 18, 2024) SUBJECT: PASADENA CONTINUUM OF CARE HOMELESSNESS PLAN YEAR
ONE PROGRESS REPORT
RECOMMENDATION:
The following report is for information only; no action is required.
BACKGROUND:
On February 29, 2024, the Pasadena Continuum of Care (CoC) Board approved the 2023-2028 Continuum of Care Homelessness Plan, which was also brought to the Economic Development & Technology Committee as an information-only item on January 20, 2024. The plan drew from extensive data analysis and community engagement to establish five Action Areas: Systemwide Planning, Equity & Respect, Crisis Response, Housing & Supports, and Prevention. Each Action Area includes a quantitative goal, supported by detailed strategies, to be achieved by the end of 2028.
While the plan was finalized in early 2024, the goals were established based on the analysis of 2022 data. As a result, the Year One Progress Report draws from calendar year 2023 data.
YEAR ONE PROGRESS REPORT:
Goal 1: 50% Reduction in Annual Homelessness
Action Area: Systemwide Planning
For this goal the Annual Count is used, which is the total number of people who experienced homelessness at any time in a single calendar year. The Annual Count is distinct from the Homeless Count which quantifies the number of people experiencing homeless on a single night. The Annual Count is generated from the analysis of data in the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) database. !
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IMEETING OF.7/8/2024AGENDA ITEM NO..13
Pasadena Continuum of Care Homelessness Plan Year One Progress Report July 8, 2024
The 2023 Annual Count was 1,097 people, a 9% reduction compared to the 2022 Annual Count (1,208 people). The Homelessness Plan set a target of a 13% reduction in 2023 over 2022, so although a 9% reduction is encouraging, we are tracking slightly behind.
Goal 2a: Parity in Housing Program Outcomes for Black People Action Area: Equity & Respect
A thorough systems gap analysis was conducted in the development of the Homelessness Plan which showed that Black people achieve lower lease-up rates in rapid rehousing programs and fewer successful exits from permanent supportive housing programs. In 2023, 58% of Black rapid rehousing participants successfully leased a unit on the private rental market. However, 71% of rapid rehousing participants of other races were able to attain permanent housing. There is still work to be done to achieve parity in rapid rehousing lease-ups.
When a participant leaves a permanent supportive housing program, the exit is considered successful if they leave to another permanent housing situation which could include a rental with or without a subsidy, living with family or friends, or moving to an institutional setting such as a skilled nursing facility. In 2023, 62% of Black people exiting from permanent supportive housing had a successful exit. In the same year, 58% of exits from permanent supportive housing among people of other races were successful. Parity was achieved for Black people in successful exits from permanent supportive housing and must be maintained.
Goal 2b: Parity in Access to Services for Hispanic and Latino People Action Area: Equity & Respect
The gap analysis also revealed disparity in access to services for hlispanic and Latino people experiencing homelessness. Program enrollment data from emergency shelter and permanent housing programs (rapid rehousing and permanent supportive housing) was utilized to measure the accessibility of services for unhoused Hispanic and Latino people. Parity will be achieved when the share of people enrolling in these programs that are Hispanic or Latino equals or exceed the share of the overall homeless population that is Hispanic or Latino. The 2024 hlomeless Count found 46% of Pasadena's homeless population to be Hispanic or Latino. In 2023 only 40% of people enrolled in emergency shelter programs and 30% of people enrolled in permanent housing programs were Hispanic or Latino, falling short of the goal in both program types. However, progress toward this goal was made when compared to the 2022 enrollment rates of unhoused hlispanic and Latino people (32% of emergency shelter and 29% of permanent housing enrollments).
Goal 3: Year-Round Shelter Beds for 80% of Unhoused People on Any Given Night Action Area: Crisis Response
Pasadena Continuum of Care Homelessness Plan Year One Progress Report July 8, 2024
Data from the Housing Inventory Count (HIC), which the CoC reports to the U.S.
Department of hlousing and Urban Development (HDD) on an annual basis, is utilized to measure the availability of shelter beds in Pasadena. The HIC is a point-in-time measurement that is taken on the night of the Homeless Count each year. While the NIC does include data on seasonal shelter beds such as the Bad Weather Shelter, only year-round shelter bed data is utilized for Goal 3. On the night of the 2023 Homeless Count there were enough year-round shelter beds for 36% of the homeless population.
A decrease was originally anticipated for 2024; however, on the night of the 2024 Homeless Count there were enough shelter beds for 40% of the City's homeless population, exceeding the Year One target.
Goal 4: Permanently House 1,110 People
Action Area: Housing & Supports
The CoC initially estimated that a cumulative 1,110 unhoused people would have to be permanently housed by the end of 2028 in order to achieve a 50% reduction in Annual Homelessness. In 2023, 410 people experiencing homeless in Pasadena attained permanent housing, far exceeding the target of 210 people. While this accomplishment should be celebrated, reductions in Annual Homelessness still fell short of the 2023 target, demonstrating a need to increase permanent housing targets in order to reduce Annual Homelessness by 50%.
Goal 5: 15% Reduction in Inflows
Action Area: Prevention
The Homelessness Plan anticipated an initial uptick in the number of people who fell into homelessness in 2023 compared to 2022, setting a target of 107 newly unhoused people in 2023. hlowever, 137 people fell into homelessness in 2023, 28% more than the anticipated amount. These greater-than-expected inflows into homelessness prevented the CoC from achieving the 2023 annual homelessness reduction target of 13%. The CoC will revise the yearly prevention targets to ensure that support a 50% reduction in annual homelessness by the end of 2028.
Pasadena Continuum of Care Homelessness Plan Year One Progress Report July 8, 2024
CONCLUSION:
In 2023 nearly double the anticipated number of people were permanently housed resulting in a 9% reduction in the number of people experiencing homelessness annually. These successes show that concerted efforts can and do move the needle in meaningful ways. In 2024, projects such as Heritage Square South, a Safe Parking program on All Saints Church's property, the expansion of the Bad Weather Shelter's capacity, and the opening of an interim housing program for transition age youth (with a local preference for Pasadena City College students) will all continue to drive progress toward the CoC's Homelessness Plan goals.
The full Pasadena Homelessness Plan, as well as the Community Engagement and Gaps Analysis report, can be found at pasadenapartnership.org/homelessness-plan.
Respectfully submitted,
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for WILLIAM K. HUANG
Housing Director
Prepared by:
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Jennifer 0 Reilly-Jones
Program Coordinator III
Approved by:
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MIGtfEt^lARQUEZ
City Manager