City of Sacramento
City Council - 5PM Report
915 I Street Sacramento, CA 95814
www.cityofsacramento.org
File ID: 2024-01966 11/19/2024 Consent Item 6.
Suspend Competitive Bidding and Issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) to Motel Owners for the City Motel Shelter Program (Two-Thirds Vote Required) File ID: 2024-01966
Location: Citywide
Recommendation: Pass a Motion suspending competitive bidding in favor of selecting motel owners to provide motel rooms for the City Motel Shelter Program through the RFP process.
Contact: Brian Pedro, Director, (916) 808-7816, [email protected]; Rodolfo Davidson, Program Manager, (916) 808-3703, [email protected]; Department of Community Response
Attachments:
1-Description/Analysis
Description/Analysis
Issue Detail: Homelessness is an issue that impacts communities without regard to geographic or political boundaries and for which there is no single answer or approach. Shelters play a significant role in addressing homelessness and as such it is necessary to create a systematic approach to addressing homelessness, which includes low-to-no barrier crisis shelters. The City of Sacramento recognizes the important role that such shelters play in helping move people out of homelessness and into permanent housing.
The City of Sacramento has made a significant investment of resources to increase the access and availability of shelter beds, services, and permanent housing to those experiencing homelessness.
The positive impact from these investments can be seen from the latest Sacramento Point-In-Time (PIT) Count that was released in June 2024. According to the 2024 Sacramento PIT Count released by the Sacramento County Continuum of Care, the County of Sacramento had an estimated homeless population of 6,615, a 28.7% decrease from the 2022 PIT Count. Between 2022 and 2024, the number of people experiencing homelessness in shelters increased by 2.2%, from 2,614 to 2,671. In contrast, the number of unsheltered individuals decreased by 40.8%, dropping from 6,664 to 3,944.
City Motel Program
File ID: 2024-01966 11/19/2024 Consent Item 6.
On January 27, 2021, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2021-0023, which proclaimed the existence of a Local Public Emergency relating to unhoused persons amidst extreme weather conditions and the COVID-19 pandemic.
On March 2, 2021, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2021-0053, which further recognized the urgent need to offer unhoused persons, facing imminent health and safety threats, with non-congregate shelter and authorized the City Manager to provide motel vouchers to qualified persons as long as the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) continued to provide 100 percent reimbursement.
On February 8, 2022, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2022-0041, which recognized the urgent need to continue to offer the local unhoused population, facing imminent health and safety threats, with non-congregate shelter and authorized the City Manager to continue to provide motel vouchers and related services for unsheltered households qualified to receive federal funding support as long as FEMA continued to allow for seeking full reimbursement for the most COVID-19 at-risk members of the unsheltered population.
On February 15, 2022, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2022-0062, which released $10,173,567 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding for homelessness and housing programming in Community Response (I23000100). This midyear ARPA program funding included funding for the City Motel Program after the FEMA reimbursement program was scheduled to end on June 30, 2022. However, on April 1, 2022, FEMA issued guidance that FEMA funding would remain available for eligible work conducted after July 1, 2022, under the 90/10% cost share (where 90% of eligible work may be reimbursed by FEMA) until the COVID-19 incident period closed.
On September 12, 2022, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2022-0296, which authorized $1,650,000 in ARPA funding to the City Motel Program. A portion of these funds have been used for non-FEMA reimbursable expenses in the City Motel Program and the remaining funds will be used for the same purpose under the recommended supplemental agreements.
In May of 2024, City Staff completed a Request for Qualifications process and as a result, identified the current partners being recommended for contracts, consistent with the program parameters.
On January 24, 2023, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2024-01976, which authorized the City Manager, or his Designee, to execute agreements for Motel Services with Paul & Sons Inc, Motel 6 Downtown, Motel 6 Central, Siyaram Hotels, LLC, Arden Acres, and Step Up on Second Street through February 28, 2025.
On May 11, 2023 FEMA closed the COVID-19 Disaster Incident Period. Therefore, after May 11, 2023, the City was no longer able to seek FEMA reimbursement for the City Motel Program
File ID: 2024-01966 11/19/2024 Consent Item 6.
expenses. Since the FEMA reimbursement period ended, the City has funded the Motel Shelter Program with ARPA and Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) grant funding.
Since the inception of the City Motel Program in December 2020, over 3,189 individuals, including 1,417 children, experiencing homelessness have been served. The City Motel Program provides a motel room along with wrap around services including housing coordination and navigation, program referrals, and move-in support to ensure once clients find housing, they can remain stably housed. Of the 1,341 participants that left to known destinations, 43.1% (or 578) went to permanent or positive temporary housing.
The current agreements with motel owners will expire February 28, 2025. It is in the City’s best interest to suspend competitive bidding to allow the City to consider factors other than the lowest price and issue a Request for Proposals for the selection of motel owners for the City Motel Shelter Program.
Policy Considerations: The recommendations in this report are in accordance with City Code Chapter 3.56.
Economic Impacts: None.
Environmental Considerations: This report concerns administrative activities that will not have a significant effect on the environment and does not constitute a “project” as defined by the California Environmental Quality Act [CEQA Sections 15061(b)(3) and 15378(b)(2)].
Sustainability: None.
Commission/Committee Action: None.
Rationale for Recommendation: Selecting contractors through an RFP process, rather than a competitive bidding process, will allow the City to consider factors other than the lowest price. Special attention will be paid to the ability of the contractor to exhibit experience working with a vulnerable population of individuals experiencing homelessness, ability to work in collaboration with DCR and a shelter service provider, the motel room and property amenities, and the proximity of the motel properties to vital services. All these factors will be used to determine the top-ranked proposers. The scores will be totaled, and the highest-ranking proposers will be asked to enter contract negotiations with the City. Final contract approval will be granted by the City Council at a future Council meeting.
Financial Considerations: Funding for the City Motel Shelter Program will come from Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) Grant Round 5 funding. Staff will return to Council at a later date for authorization to award contracts to selected motel owners and to make any necessary budgetary adjustments.
File ID: 2024-01966 11/19/2024 Consent Item 6.
Local Business Enterprise (LBE): None.