Sonoma Overnight Support shelter gets funding

The Sonoma Overnight Support group’s winter shelter got funding from the county after it was initially denied.|

Officials at Sonoma’s only homeless shelter said they are heaving a sigh of relief now that the county has provided funding for the organization’s winter shelter.

Kathy King, executive director of Sonoma Overnight Support, which runs the shelter, said she’s grateful to her supporters, who she believes helped convince county officials to finally approve a total of $60,000 for the winter shelter last week.

The Sonoma County Community Development Commission, which hands out the money on behalf of the county and in the past has supported the winter shelter program, failed to allocate any money to it when it disbursed grants this March – though it dealt out more than $2.1 million in funds to other homeless-support agencies throughout the county. In 2017, the CDC granted Sonoma Overnight Support $30,000 for its winter shelter, which made this year’s initial complete lack of funds all the more disappointing to SOS officials.

At the time, King said she believed the cutting of funds stemmed from the CDC’s preference that county homeless shelters adhere to federal “Housing First” standards, in which housing homeless people, regardless of whether they are under the influence of drugs or alcohol, takes first priority.

But “Housing First” standards would prevent the Haven from two of its core practices: to prioritize locals, and deny shelter access to clients under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Unlike the Haven, however, the winter shelter does adhere to Housing First standards – further frustrating King over the CDC’s initial denial of winter-shelter funds.

But after a show of support from members of the Sonoma City Council, along with a handful of local nonprofits – and when more federal money became available because of a larger-than-anticipated allocation from the federal department of Housing and Urban Development – the county approved the $30,000 in funding, King said. The other $30,000, authorized July 10 by the Board of Supervisors, came from transient occupancy tax funds.

The winter shelter will host chronically homeless county residents from December 2018 through March 2019. It costs about $60,000 per year to operate.

“I’m thrilled that the supervisors came through,” King said. “I appreciate everyone who wrote supportive letters to the supervisors – there were some 30 letters from the City Council, the Boys & Girls Club, La Luz, the (Sonoma Valley) Hospital, the health center, businesses, churches and congregations and others.”

Sonoma City Councilmember Gary Edwards said, “I think it’s about time. I think the county denied a reasonable request,” referring to the earlier decision not to allocate funds to the shelter.

“We share the county’s responsibility in looking after our homeless folks,” Edwards said. “Having someone here to provide the services Kathy provides is important. Not all the folks who use the shelter are from the City of Sonoma. It’s a Valley issue.”

Edwards noted that the City Council in March stepped in and allocated $20,000 in one-time funds to the organization for operation of the Haven.

Sonoma Overnight Support provides the only homeless shelters for residents of the Sonoma Valley through its two shelters, the Haven on First Street West and the winter shelter at the Sonoma Alliance Church on Watmaugh Road. The annual budget for SOS is about $600,000, according to King.

The winter shelter has largely served overflow during the winter months when space wasn’t available at the Haven.

The organization accepts any homeless in need of winter shelter if they show up at the Haven by 6 p.m. during the December-March winter months, providing dinner and transportation to the Alliance Church via a contract with Vern’s Taxi.

The church itself does not take part in the program, except to open its doors to its Fellowship Hall.

King said the winter shelter housed 44 individuals with 1,000 bed nights during its last winter season. A “bed night” refers to the occupancy of one person assigned to one bed for one night.

“Some individuals stay one night, some stay all of January, all of February, all of March,” King said.

Email Janis at janis.mara@sonomanews.com.

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