County OKs $4M to address homelessness

The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday took a deep look at local housing and homelessness, resulting in the allocation of millions of dollars to help address the growing issues and a potential change to the county’s camping policy.

The board approved spending nearly $4 million of the county’s total $96 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds, which it received from the federal government during the pandemic, based on recommendations from staff, including Tina Rivera, the county’s health services director, and Dave Kiff, interim executive director of the county’s Community Development Commission.

Of the total, $2.16 million will be used for a Centralized Housing Location system to help identify housing options for people experiencing homelessness; $865,000 to build up supportive housing units and $620,000 for the Peer Support Program, which helps individuals experiencing homelessness get ready for housing placement.

Kiff noted the bulk of the funds would go toward finding permanent supportive housing, which has been a need underscored by county staff.

“We have a lot of people walking around with vouchers and they have no place to go, so we really need to build those units up,” Kiff said.

“We know that it’s going to take housing,” Rivera added. “Housing is the solution.”

Preliminary results from a recent homeless count showed there were 726 people experiencing chronic homelessness in Sonoma County, which is a 29% increase from 2020, said Michael Gause, head of homelessness programs at the Sonoma County Community Development Commission.

The number of families experiencing homelessness decreased by 40% since last year, but the county saw a 69% increase in youth experiencing homelessness. Overall, the number of people experiencing homelessness has increased about 5%, Gause reported.

More detailed data from the count is expected between August and September, Gause said.

The county is on track to have sufficient temporary housing options, like shelters, but there is a 1,001-unit gap in permanent housing units, Kiff told the board.

“That backlog, that lack of system flow is really harming our ability to put people in a shelter, to put people into permanent supportive housing,” Kiff said.

He referred to options like housing units available through Homekey, a state program that allocates funds of local jurisdictions and tribal governments to re-purpose motels for homeless housing and to build new shelter sites.

Homeless individuals are turning to congregate shelters, like Sam Jones Hall in Santa Rosa, in moments of desperation, Rivera said.

A tool like the Centralized Housing Location system, Kiff said, could help tackle the need for more housing because it’s something landlords can participate in through the federal housing voucher program.

Supervisor Chris Coursey, who on Tuesday served as the board’s acting chair, praised the staff’s goal of locating more permanent housing options.

“Once we identify new landlords and get these units using vouchers, renting to people with vouchers, and they find out it works, they get support from us, the stigma goes away,” Coursey said. “Most of those units I expect will stay on. This is something that has some legs, I think.”

Staff also presented the board with proposed updates to the county’s camping ordinance, which regulates where and when people experiencing homelessness can sleep outside on public property.

The updates are intended to bring the county’s ordinance into compliance with laws protecting homeless individuals sleeping in public spaces, if no other options exist.

Under the proposed changes, camping on public property would be permitted between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m. daily. The changes would also prohibit camping in certain areas, including within 100 feet of a residence, playground, school or other licensed child care facility; within any county park, public highway or road; and within 150 feet of the high water mark of nearby bodies of water, like rivers and creeks, as designated by the state.

The changes would generally apply to unincorporated areas in Sonoma County and county-owned land, according to Matt Lilligren, deputy county counsel.

Lilligren said the intention is to continue with the county’s current process of trying to get homeless individuals into shelters and to provide them with services before sweeping encampments, not to cite or arrest them. He added the county typically provides notice to individuals in encampments from 24 hours to a week.

The discussion came on the heels of county officials’ decision to indefinitely close part of the Joe Rodota Trail in Santa Rosa because of a homeless encampment, which has grown to an estimated 15 to 20 tents.

Coursey emphasized the need for the county to be clear about what the public can expect to see as a result of any adopted changes.

“The public already has expectations that sometimes are difficult to align with the legal realities that we face,” Coursey said. “People don’t understand that we’re trying to do everything that we can, that is legal, and not be criminalizing homelessness. There’s no solution for putting people in jail for sleeping in public.”

Supervisor Lynda Hopkins expressed concern as to whether using the high water levels designated by the state was the best tool for determining where homeless individuals should not camp. She noted there are several areas in her west county district where the high water mark is unknown and is often a point of contention.

Hopkins added that areas far from creeks and lakes like Laguna de Santa Rosa, a wetland, are still a flood risk and could pose safety risks if people camped there. Supervisor James Gore echoed Hopkins concerns.

Staff is set to consider other ways to identify flood risk areas and bring those options before the board in August.

You can reach Staff Writer Emma Murphy at 707-521-5228 or emma.murphy@pressdemocrat.com.