TO: HONORABLE MAYOR
AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: Erik L. Soliván
Jon Cicirelli
John Ristow
Matt Loesch
Omar Passons
SUBJECT: See Below DATE: April 7, 2025
Approved
Date:
4/10/2025
COUNCIL DISTRICT: Citywide
SUBJECT: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
RECOMMENDATION
Accept the City of San José’s Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report.
SUMMARY AND OUTCOME
This memorandum provides an update on the City of San José's coordinated strategy to reduce unsheltered homelessness, structured around five key components: Engage, Shelter, Clear, Preserve, and Restore (ESCPR). The approach emphasizes proactive outreach, increasing shelter options, clearing and preserving public spaces, and restoring those spaces for community use through the coordinated efforts of multiple City departments.
While significant progress has been achieved—including expanded shelter capacity and enhanced outreach—continued success will require ongoing collaboration from county, state, and federal governments, along with partnerships across public, private, and nonprofit sectors.
The City remains committed to cross-departmental coordination under a “One Team” approach, which focuses on enhancing efficiency, collaboration, and measurable progress in addressing homelessness and improving public spaces citywide.
COUNCIL AGENDA: 4/22/25
FILE: 25-407
ITEM: 7.1
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
BACKGROUND
The City’s work to address homelessness is focused on reducing unsheltered homelessness and managing the impacts of homelessness through coordinated efforts across departments. This work includes providing housing and shelter to help reduce the number of people living without shelter and also involves addressing encampments, lived-in vehicles, and a range of public safety, environmental, and economic impacts across the city.
It is important to view key aspects of the City’s efforts to manage impacts of homelessness as another point on the housing continuum. An important part of the City’s strategy is to aim to connect individuals with a range of shelter options through an “all-of-the-above” approach that provides safe, decent, and managed places to reside.
The Administration presented its last Consolidated Homelessness Report on November 5, 2024, to the full City Council and also presented a comprehensive analysis on the state of homelessness and housing during the February 11, 2025, City Council Study Session, which laid the strategic direction for engagement across multiple departments.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
In line with the City’s “One Team” approach, several departments provide key leadership in addressing homelessness.
• Housing Department (HSG) is the lead for homelessness response, including outreach, oversight of interim shelters, and connecting people to permanent homes;
• Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services Department (PRNS) through encampment abatements and a range of cleaning and sanitation services; • Department of Transportation (DOT) through the recently launched Oversized and Lived-In Vehicle Enforcement (OLIVE) pilot program and parking enforcement of posted rules and regulations;
• Department of Public Works (DPW) in building new emergency housing options; and
• Environmental Services Department (ESD) in seeking to protect natural habitat, among other departmental contributions.
The ESCPR tactic used to synchronize operations across the departments consists of five components.
1) Engage: Providing proactive outreach and offering connections to available shelter, safe parking, or Homeward Bound options to individuals experiencing homelessness. This work is led by HSG.
2) Shelter: Creating and offering emergency interim housing and safe parking to expand shelter capacity for those engaged. This work is led by HSG and DPW. 3) Clear: Removing encampments from public areas once individuals have been engaged and offered shelter. This work is led by PRNS and DOT. 4) Preserve: Maintaining cleared areas to prevent re-encampment or environmental degradation. This work is led by PRNS and DOT. 5) Restore: Returning public spaces to their intended uses, such as trails, parks, walking paths, riverbanks, sidewalks, parking spaces, and streets. This work is led by PRNS and ESD.
This tactic establishes the protocol for much of the interdepartmental operation of mitigating impacts and resolving encampments. There are instances when engagement and sheltering do not occur, but as the departments improve the synchronization of operations, the protocol will be executed more consistently. To assist with the complex execution across three departments, HSG, DOT, and PRNS set annual objectives measured by key results, tracked on a biweekly basis by key operational staff. This “One Team” approach enhances coordination and continuity in the synchronized operation across multiple City departments. In addition to the above, there are a range of efforts such as weekly encampment trash route services, public safety engagement and enforcement by San José Police Department (SJPD), fire and medical response by San José Fire Department, and other aspects of the City’s overall response to homelessness that are managed across departments on an ongoing basis.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
Coordinating with County, Regional, State, and Federal Governments
Addressing homelessness in the City of San José requires a well-coordinated effort with the County of Santa Clara, regional government agencies for transportation (Valley Transportation Authority, Caltrans), and water (Valley Water District).
The federal and state governments deploy resources for rental assistance, behavioral health support, and funding for the homelessness Continuums of Care, among other roles. Both state and county governments have indispensable and essential responsibilities in addressing homelessness at the local level. The state provides funding, manages property within city limits, and serves as a major source of financial support for counties. Counties possess expertise in behavioral and physical health, including substance use disorder and mental illness treatment, public health, and the operation of local justice systems.
In addition to the many non-profit and private sector partners, these governmental entities have major roles that directly affect the overall success of homelessness response efforts in cities. A collective, coordinated effort is essential to address the immediate challenge of unsheltered homelessness and its impact on our public spaces.
The City’s ongoing work aligns with the pillars of the regional Community Plan to End Homelessness. The revised strategy—including a clearly defined problem and encampment resolution tactics—will shape the upcoming new Community Plan to End Homelessness.
ANALYSIS
The ESCPR tactic for organizing the cross-departmental operation for encampment resolution, as referenced above, is further defined below. The tactic refined its implementation during the February 11, 2025, Fiscal Year 2025-2026 Budget Priority Setting Study Session, which included a mathematical analysis defining the demand for shelter at approximately 5,477 individuals experiencing unsheltered homelessness. This data underscores the significant gap between shelter supply and demand, emphasizing the scale of the City’s outreach and sheltering challenges.
I. ENGAGE
The first part of the tactic is to engage unsheltered residents and connect them with available resources, safe parking, shelter, and housing. This effort is led by HSG, which has transitioned from a contract-based outreach team to an in-house team with the onboarding of 10 full-time employees (reducing prior contracted services) that administer the City’s Targeted Outreach Engagement Program (TOEP). TOEP coordinates outreach across multiple City departments to ensure unsheltered residents receive appropriate engagement—including data collection, identification of disabilities,
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
and the provision of appropriate and reasonable accommodations—prior to any abatement actions.
Under TOEP, HSG targets a select set of more than 184 encampment service areas serviced by the PRNS-BeautifySJ Program, specifically those within 1.5 miles of an interim housing site and the numerous encampment service areas along Coyote Creek.
Current priorities include encampment service areas near newly opened shelter sites (e.g., Monterey-Branham Interim Housing, Berryessa Safe Parking) and along Coyote Creek.
The San José Public Library (SJPL) further supports engagement for impacted individuals through its Holistic Library Initiative, which offers targeted programs and partnerships. In FY 2024-2025, the Holistic Library Initiative organized 84 events, including resource fairs, job fairs, and brief consultative services, serving over 620 individuals experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity. In response to feedback from individuals with lived experience and digital access barriers, SJPL will launch the MyConnectSV@SJPL, establishing kiosks at key locations to facilitate access for individuals enrolled in the County’s Homelessness Management Information System to connect with case managers and complete documentation to ensure their progression to stable housing. SJPL partnerships with local nonprofit organizations, including PATH, Destination: Home, JobTrain, Downtown Streets, and Asian Americans for Community Involvement, further support these efforts.
The City Manager’s Office of Economic Development and Cultural Affairs (OEDCA) contributes to engagement through workforce development and economic opportunities aimed at long-term stability. Through its federally funded work2future program, OEDCA provides workforce development services annually to approximately 2,000 youth and adults, with about 60% experiencing housing instability. In late spring 2024, work2future launched a pilot partnership with homeless-serving agencies focused on young adults.
Partnering organizations included Bill Wilson Center, Metro-ED, San José Job Corps, San José Conservation Corps, and the City Team. Many of these young adult clients are justice-involved individuals who receive career and training services, paid work experience, supportive services, and intensive case management.
Still in its pilot phase, this holistic shared case management model has served 110 clients, with over 70% securing employment—primarily in high-wage, high-growth industries such as IT, healthcare, and manufacturing. However, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which funds work2future, is currently pending reauthorization, creating uncertainty about the scale and future of these workforce initiatives for the homeless population.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
To assess the demand for shelter, the Administration completed two critical counts of the unsheltered population.
• The first was conducted along Coyote Creek in December 2024, surveying all encampments and lived-in vehicles within the first 12 miles—Phase 1 of the Direct Discharge areas defined under the City’s Stormwater Permit. Phase 1 identified approximately 734 individuals living along waterways. Phase 2, covering the remaining 15 miles, began in March 2025.
• The second was a citywide count of all lived-in vehicles—including oversized and standard vehicles—which totaled 960.
All counts were incorporated into the City estimate of approximately 5,477 unsheltered individuals citywide as of February 2025.
HSG will target outreach to encampment service areas and lived-in vehicles to engage and offer shelter, when available, prior to the clearing, preserving, and restoring by PRNS or DOT as described below.
II. SHELTER
The provision of shelter, following engagement with people in encampments, is a critical component of the City’s tactic to clear and preserve public spaces.
DPW and HSG recently completed several significant interim housing and safe parking projects, leading efforts to secure funding, develop partnerships with service providers, and coordinate placements into interim housing units and safe parking for individuals identified through targeted outreach. In February 2025, the Branham and Monterey Homekey project began welcoming individuals from priority engagement areas, marking a critical step in expanding secure shelter options. Similarly, the Pacific Motor Inn Homekey project, another collaboration managed by HSG, has successfully provided shelter to residents since August 2024, demonstrating effective repurposing of existing structures to shelter individuals engaged from priority areas. Additionally, the Berryessa Safe Parking initiative began operations in March 2025, directly supporting individuals engaged through outreach who are living in vehicles within City Council-prioritized areas.
Looking ahead, the City anticipates significant expansion of available interim shelters and safe parking sites, as outlined in Table 1. Collaborative efforts are underway by HSG and OEDCA to finalize letters of intent for up to five additional hotel/motel conversions, specifically to serve individuals engaged through outreach who are currently residing along waterways. OEDCA supports this expansion by managing site selection, conducting necessary due diligence, and securing land rights through leases, purchases, or easements.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
In addition, DPW will complete construction of the Taylor Street Navigation Hub, the Rue Ferrari Interim Housing Site Expansion, and the Via del Oro, Cerone and Cherry Avenue Interim Housing sites.
These coordinated efforts will add more than 1,000 beds to the City’s shelter system.
Table 1: Increase in Shelter Supply: Production Summary 1 III. CLEAR
After engaging and sheltering, the next step is clearing of either individual encampment sites, encampment service areas, or lived-in vehicles, specifically oversized vehicles in violation of the vehicle code, by PRNS-BeautifySJ Program or the DOT Oversized and Lived-In Vehicle Enforcement (OLIVE) Pilot Program, with support provided by the SJPD.
PRNS – Beautify SJ Program
PRNS-BeautifySJ Program leads efforts along creeks, in neighborhoods, parks, trails, and open spaces to manage encampments in alignment with the City’s Setbacks and Code of Conduct. The Code of Conduct has been distributed at all encampment service areas and is provided to unsheltered residents on an ongoing basis. The updated Code of Conduct includes considerations related to fire risk and damage to public infrastructure, utilities, or vegetation. Per City Council direction on November 5, 2024, staff were asked to evaluate the feasibility of incorporating abatement criteria related to the accumulation of building materials and extended length of stay. However, staff have not yet identified a logistically feasible way to implement these criteria. This approach
1 The listed numbers for units, spaces, and beds are estimates. Actual occupancy may vary depending on household composition, such as single, double, or family occupancy. Additionally, due to construction complexities and potential value engineering, final capacities may fluctuate.
District Project / Site Name # of Units /
Spaces
# of
Beds
Status / Estimated
Opening Date
3 Pacific Motor Inn 72 72 Opened August 2024
2 Branham Monterey 204 216 Opened February 2024
3 Berryessa Safe Parking 86 spaces N/A Opened March 2025 10 Via del Oro 135 150 April 2025
3 Taylor Street North 56 56 June 2025
Various Hoteling 305 455 July 2025
4 Cerone 162 200 September 2025
9 Cherry Avenue 128 136 September 2025
2 Rue Ferrari Expansion 108 144 September 2025
TOTAL 1,256 1,429
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
continues to balance enforcement with the need to maintain public spaces through the removal of trash, debris, and biowaste.
In some instances, SJPD is engaged when legal enforcement is required, as supported by off-duty officers via the Secondary Employment Unit or through overtime. Although the City prioritizes engagement and sheltering, for safety and other reasons, some areas must be cleared even if shelter is not immediately available; however, every attempt is made to minimize such occurrences.
PRNS-BeautifySJ works closely with Caltrans, Union Pacific Railroad, County of Santa Clara, and Valley Water to leverage resources to jointly address encampments located within the City but outside of the City of San José’s jurisdiction.
The PRNS-BeautifySJ Program provides services at encampment service area locations to maintain cleanliness and sanitation at the sites. Services include:
• Active Encampment Service Areas: Sites receiving routine trash pickup to maintain cleanliness. Encampments on land receive weekly trash pickup, while encampments along waterways receive services every two weeks. • Encampment Trash Routes: Encampments are assigned to land-based routes (North, South, East, and West zones) or to the Waterways Trash Route, which provides biweekly trash collection along waterways. Residents adhering to Good Neighbor Rules can participate in the Cash for Trash Program, receiving a $5 per bag redemption value for keeping their area clean.
• Encampment Abatements: The removal of encampments in No Return Zones, Setback Areas, or when individuals fail to adhere to the Code of Conduct. • Recreational Vehicle Pollution Prevention Program: This program proactively provides trash and biowaste collection for lived-in vehicles. Between July 2024 and February 2025, 197,837 pounds of waste were removed.
Table 2, below, provides key progress data about the above initiatives during the current fiscal year through February.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
Table 2: Managing Impacts: Outputs Summary (July 2024 – February 2025) PRNS Initiative Result
Active encampment service areas 173
Encampment Trash collections 5,162
Encampment Abatements 530
Encampment Trash Removed (lbs.) 6,566,200
Total miles of encampments abated 8.79 miles
RV Pollution Prevention Program 197,837 pounds of biowaste removed Total Vehicles in RVP3 537
Proactive Engagements
(referred to social service resources)
297
During Fiscal Year 2024–2025, staff began formal enforcement of the City’s Encampment Code of Conduct. While enforcement is underway, the City does not currently collect data on Code of Conduct violations that result in abatement or those that lead to cooperative changes in behavior without requiring abatement, though both may be considered in future reporting. Since implementation began, enforcement activity has increased across the City. PRNS-BeautifySJ estimates approximately 625 abatements will be completed this fiscal year, compared to 345 abatements completed in FY 2023–2024.
In response to City Council direction, staff also evaluated response times for reviewing, responding to, and resolving Code of Conduct complaints. However, most violations are identified proactively by City personnel rather than through public complaints, and as a result, a reliable average response time for complaint-based reviews is not currently available.
City Council also directed staff to assess efforts to reduce the number of Tier III encampments—the most impacted encampments receiving the highest level of service.
While specific data on these efforts will not be available until the end of the fiscal year, analysis is underway to evaluate how best to reduce Tier III encampment service areas citywide and what resources would be needed to effectively implement this approach.
PRNS-BeautifySJ also assessed the feasibility of placing trash dumpsters at encampment locations with substantial debris. For example, near Watson Park the assessment found that dumpsters did not reduce trash as intended. Instead, they frequently attracted illegal dumping, were rummaged through for recyclables, and resulted in overflow, which prevented scheduled pickups without additional clearing by City staff.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
DOT – OLIVE Pilot Program
DOT’s Parking Compliance Unit focuses on addressing congregations of oversized and lived-in vehicles parked on city streets near sensitive areas through the recently launched OLIVE Pilot Program. The enforcement of San José Municipal Code and California Vehicle Code to address homelessness has proven to be both difficult and largely ineffective as these codes never contemplated the complexity and challenges of lived-in vehicles.
The OLIVE Pilot Program was established to mitigate the environmental and safety concerns associated with oversized and lived-in vehicles parked on city streets. This program is supported by a $1.6 million budget allocation that enables DOT to:
• Identify areas impacted by oversized and lived-in vehicle parking; • Establish temporary tow-away zones to facilitate clean-up and encourage vehicles to relocate; and
• Assess the feasibility of permanent parking restrictions at select locations.
A citywide inventory of oversized and lived-in vehicles identified over 400 impacted sites. Based on the availability of resources, this led to the identification of a subset of the 30 most impactful sites based on congregations of lived-in vehicles, blight, and proximity to sensitive areas like schools, parks, and waterways. These zones, established with temporary tow-away restrictions and enforced for approximately one month per site, allow for clean-up, street sweeping, and vehicle relocation. Vehicles that do not voluntarily move are subject to towing.
Table 3, below, provides a summary of progress regarding the OLIVE Pilot Program during the current fiscal year through March.
Table 3: Addressing Oversized and Lived-in Vehicles: Program Summary (July 2024 – March 2025)
Metric Result
High Impact OLIVE Sites Prioritized in FY
2024-2025
30 OLIVE Sites Established and Enforced 11 (as of March 27, 2025) Vehicles Parked within Established OLIVE
Sites (total)
85 (presumed lived-in), 269 (personal
vehicles)
Vehicles Towed (did not voluntarily move) 5 (presumed lived-in), 6 (personal vehicles) Remaining OLIVE sites FY 2024-2025 19
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
SJPD – Public Safety Coordination
SJPD plays a critical role in maintaining public safety while addressing issues related to both encampments and lived-in vehicles. SJPD’s responsibilities include:
• Providing security and maintaining order during encampment abatements, ensuring the safety of City staff, unhoused residents, and the surrounding community.
• Enforcing municipal code violations, which may include towing in cases of criminal violations or legal infractions.
• Responding to criminal activity within encampments to protect public safety for all residents whether housed or unhoused and uphold the law.
While towing is not SJPD’s primary enforcement strategy, the SJPD does impound vehicles when necessary, under specific circumstances based on legal violations. One step the City took was to remove barriers to lawful impound efforts. For example, the Administration collaborated with tow operators to remove financial barriers associated with the complex impounding of oversized vehicles.
Currently, there is no centralized data available about impounded vehicles. To improve tracking, the City has contracted with Autura, a tow management systems provider, to automate the towing and impound process. Once fully implemented, this system will generate detailed data on the types and locations of vehicle impounds occurring across the City.
In addition to its enforcement role, SJPD recognizes its capacity to help connect individuals experiencing homelessness to substance use treatment. As a result, SJPD proactively established a partnership with Recovery Café to offer individuals transportation to Recovery Café to begin accessing services. The Administration has been working with the County of Santa Clara through the SJPD to refer people to Adult Outpatient Treatment services for people (including, but not limited to, unhoused people) with serious mental illness and substance use disorders. The Administration is also working with the County to determine the most effective approach for utilizing CARE Court to help address specific care needs of unhoused people for a more narrow group of people with diagnosed schizophrenia spectrum or other psychotic disorders.
SJPD’s approach emphasizes balancing enforcement with compassion, ensuring that necessary actions are taken to protect public safety while recognizing the challenges faced by unhoused individuals. Enforcement efforts are carried out only when required to maintain lawful conduct and the well-being of both housed and unhoused residents.
IV. PRESERVE
After engaging, sheltering, and clearing, the City must preserve progress by maintaining the cleared areas to prevent re-encampment and environmental degradation. PRNS-BeautifySJ Program is leading this effort to enforce No Return
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
Zones (NRZs) and No Encampment Areas along waterways, as well as around existing and new Emergency Interim Housing and Safe Parking sites to protect environmental resources, public safety, and infrastructure.
City Council approved several initiatives in the Fiscal Year 2024-2025 Adopted Budget to preserve public spaces that have been cleared under City Council direction, including in the General Fund and as part of state grant-funded efforts (e.g., Encampment Resolution Fund) and to meet City’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Municipal Regional Stormwater Permit (Stormwater Permit) requirements, or for the protection of other sensitive areas. PRNS-BeautifySJ Program staff is leading the implementation of NRZs, ensuring these areas remain free of encampments once cleared.
In late March 2025, PRNS-BeautifySJ Program staff began installing No Return/Encampment Zone signage near current emergency interim housing sites.
Additional signage for waterway NRZs is in development and will be installed beginning in April 2025. Lived-in vehicles are not subject to NRZ enforcement, as vehicles continue to be governed separately by the California Vehicle Code. However, DOT may post signs to ensure cleared areas around Safe Parking do not repopulate with vehicles.
Once a NRZ has been designated, any encampment that returns to the area is subject to abatement without additional posting, as the metal NRZ signs serve as standing notification. Designated areas—often near creeks, rivers, and flood-prone zones—are regularly monitored and cleared to prevent re-encampment.
PRNS-BeautifySJ plays a key role in preparing these areas before a NRZ designation by posting signage, coordinating cleanups, and conducting abatement activities. Once established, a dedicated No Return Zone Team maintains these public spaces and educates unhoused individuals about NRZ boundaries and requirements. SJPD provides enforcement support through off-duty officers under the Secondary Employment Program to ensure compliance and address safety concerns.
Table 4, below, provides details about progress towards establishing No Encampment Zones as of March of this year.
Table 4: Managing Impacts: No Encampment Zones Summary (as of March 2025) Initiative Number
No Return Zones around Shelter 2
No Encampment Zones along Waterway 1
Total 3
Additional Zones Planned in FY 2024-2025 15
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
As the City expands efforts to preserve public spaces, these strategies will continue to evolve. PRNS will collaborate with other departments, including HSG, to monitor NRZ effectiveness and adjust enforcement and resource allocation as needed to keep these areas clear and accessible.
V. RESTORE
After engaging, sheltering, clearing, and preserving City progress, the final step is to restore natural areas, waterways, and public spaces.
PRNS and ESD lead efforts to rehabilitate parks, trails, and open spaces by clearing debris, replanting native vegetation, and maintaining public access while also prioritizing environmental conservation. PRNS-BeautifySJ and ESD collaborate to restore San José’s natural areas and waterways in alignment with the City’s Stormwater Permit mandates.
ESD focuses on water quality protection, pollution prevention, and habitat restoration to ensure that creeks and rivers remain safe for wildlife and the community. Together, these departments play a vital role in returning natural areas to their original state, enhancing ecological health, and promoting long-term environmental sustainability.
ESD serves several key functions under the restore component of the City’s overall strategy. One major responsibility is coordinating with and responding to the State Water Board regarding progress toward regulatory compliance with the Stormwater Permit. In March 2025, ESD provided an update to the Transportation and Environment Committee
2 outlining the current status and next steps toward meeting Stormwater Permit requirements.
In addition, ESD actively supports and engages in the restoration of public spaces, particularly riparian corridors. ESD is currently working with Valley Water to maximize efforts in clearing water channels and will explore future watershed restoration strategies. ESD also continues to collaborate with nonprofit organizations to engage and educate the community on watershed health and foster connections to natural spaces.
An example of PRNS’ restoration efforts is the department’s successful rehabilitation of the area along the Guadalupe Trail following an encampment abatement. Additionally, PRNS-BeautifySJ provides annual funding to three creek-focused partner organizations—Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful, South Bay Clean Creeks Coalition, and Trash Punx—which coordinate volunteer litter pickup events along Coyote Creek, the Guadalupe River, and Los Gatos Creek.
2 https://sanjose.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=13784360&GUID=4D4338E0- A0CF-4C27-88A5- D18EF019FE4E
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
These efforts help prevent trash from entering waterways, support the City’s long-term sustainability goals, provide public education, and foster strong community connections to San José’s natural areas.
Data and Technology-Related Updates
Homelessness Data Consolidation Project
As part of a multi-year effort to enhance analytical capabilities, the City launched the Homelessness Data Consolidation Project in 2024 to centralize data from multiple departments and strengthen coordination, tracking, and decision-making.
Early work has focused on cross-departmental relationship-building, identifying existing datasets, assessing data quality, and understanding how information is captured. Staff have also drafted a preliminary data architecture by mapping systems that house homelessness-related data.
Next steps include designing a centralized data infrastructure that integrates—but does not replace—existing departmental systems. Staff are actively exploring integration options and associated costs. Conversations are also underway about future analytical tools, including progress visualizations and a potential risk impact formula. These predictive capabilities remain in early development and are dependent on the success of current consolidation efforts.
Dashboard Visualizations
Staff has made progress regarding data visualization as directed by City Council in two ways, with more efforts in process.
a. Housing Utilization Dashboard: HSG’s dashboard is developed and will be published soon. Staff will provide an update once it is live on the HSG website.
b. OLIVE Implementation Dashboard: As part of the OLIVE Pilot Program, DOT launched the Oversized/Lived-in Vehicle Story Map website3, offering a comprehensive program overview. The site features an interactive map displaying locations of vehicles identified in the citywide inventory, a mapped list of the 30 OLIVE sites scheduled for action throughout FY 2024-2025, and implementation details, including timelines and before-and-after photos.
3 https://csj.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant/portfolio/index.html?appid=b44b50f968b94695a3d5530b3b365121
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
Pending SJ311 Reporting and Communication Updates
The City’s Information Technology Department (ITD) continues to work to improve the technological tools available to City departments to foster efficient coordination. The planned enhancements include changes to refine routing of encampment reports for PRNS-BeautifySJ, inclusion of a system for customers to receive ticket numbers, and automation of response when actions have been taken.
In addition to the critical changes that support PRNS-BeautifySJ, ITD is working to ensure options that can provide value for HSG response. HSG has transitioned from a reactive service model to a proactive targeted outreach and engagement strategy, which necessitates adjustments to SJ311's handling of related reports. Planned updates include refining service request routing, user messaging, and case closure procedures, as well as updating corresponding dashboards. Additional details will be provided as updates are implemented this fall.
EVALUATION AND FOLLOW-UP
It is anticipated that the next Consolidated Annual Homelessness Report will be presented to the City Council in the fall of 2025, after the close of the year, once departments have had the opportunity to fully assess the outcomes from FY 2024-2025.
COST SUMMARY/IMPLICATIONS
The budget for the City’s work to address homelessness in FY 2024-2025 by major spending category is summarized in the table below. Additional detail by spending category, department, and fund is provided in the Homelessness Budget: 2024-2025 Funding Allocation Appendix
4 in the 2024-2025 Adopted Operating Budget.
Citywide Homelessness Budget in the 2024-2025 Adopted Operating Budget ($ of Millions)
Spending Category FY 2024-2025
Adopted
Interim Housing / Safe or Alternative Sleeping 128.4
Encampment Management and Abatement 32.2
Outreach and Supportive Services 30.2
Prevention and Rapid Rehousing 26.1
Administrative and Programmatic Support 3.5
Total 220.4
4 https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/115998/638659693622870000
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
April 7, 2025
Subject: Consolidated Annual Homelessness Mid-Year Report
COORDINATION
The preparation of this memorandum was coordinated with the City Attorney’s Office, City Manager’s Budget Office, City Manager’s Office of Economic Development and Cultural Affairs, Environmental Services Department, Library Department, and Police Department.
PUBLIC OUTREACH
This memorandum will be posted on the City’s Council Agenda website for the April 22, 2025 City Council meeting.
COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION AND INPUT
No commission recommendation or input is associated with this action.
CEQA
Not a Project, File No. PP17 009, Staff Reports, Assessments, Annual Reports, and Informational Memos that involve no approvals of any City action.
PUBLIC SUBSIDY REPORTING
This item does not include a public subsidy as defined in section 53083 or 53083.1 of the California Government Code or the City’s Open Government Resolution.
/s/ /s/ Erik L. Soliván Jon Cicirelli
Housing Director Director, Parks, Recreation and
Neighborhood Services
/s/ /s/ John Ristow Matt Loesch
Director, Department of Transportation Director, Department of Public Works
Omar Passons
Deputy City Manager
The principal author of this memorandum is Jiri Rutner, Assistant to the City Manager, Homelessness Solutions Enterprise Manager, Office of the City Manager. For questions, please contact at [email protected]
.