Federal Government Awards $10 Million to 11 Cities to Create Supportive Housing for 555 People Experiencing Chronic Homelessness and Alcoholism

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced funding for a new initiative that will provide $10 million in two-year grants for 12 programs that will help people who have lived on the streets for long periods of time because of their addiction to alcohol. The program is called, “Housing For People Who Are Homeless and Addicted to Alcohol.” Here is the list of cities with the number of people they will help.

The City of Santa Monica was one of the 11 cities awarded, along with Chattanooga, Chicago, Contra Costa, Denver, Jacksonville, New York City, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Cruz, and Washington, D.C.

Interesting that the City of Los Angeles, with the largest concentrated chronic homeless population in the country was not included.

Here is the press release sent out by the City of Santa Monica:
___________

"The City of Santa Monica was recently selected as one of 10 communities nationwide to receive a federal grant to help combat long-term homelessness.
Officials from U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will present the grant to City leaders on Monday, August 29, 2005 at 3 p.m. in the Council Chambers of Santa Monica City Hall.

The federal agency announced that Santa Monica will receive over $700,000 for rental subsidies and other costs over two years to provide permanent housing with supportive services to house 30 persons who are chronically homeless and addicted to alcohol. The focus of the grant is Santa Monica’s long-term homeless individuals who are living on the streets and who are addicted to alcohol. These individuals tend to have the highest utilization of public resources and services such as police, paramedics and hospital emergency rooms.

Officials from HUD will present the award to Mayor Pam O’Connor and other city leaders. Philip Mangano, the Executive Director of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness who was appointed by President Bush to spearhead federal initiatives to reduce homelessness, is tentatively scheduled for the event.

The federal grant will provide the rental costs, and the City and homeless providers will provide a match for the supportive services needed to get them into housing and keep them off the streets. The City of Santa Monica and its partner agencies – CLARE Foundation, OPCC, New Directions, St. Joseph’s Center, Step Up on Second, Venice Family Clinic, LA County Department of Mental Health, local hospitals and others - will provide supportive services during a six-month period of stabilization before placing individuals in permanent housing and will continue the services after they are housed.

The approach to service delivery will be an expansion of the City’s Chronic Homeless Program, which began in July 2004. This model uses a multi-disciplinary team to strategically assess the needs of chronically homeless individuals and focus resources on interventions.

To date, the chronic pilot project has served 25 individuals, who have had an average time of homelessness of 12 years. Of these individuals, 10 are now permanently housed; 3 are in temporary housing with placements pending; 1 is on the street with placement pending; 8 are homeless and in the process of engagement; 2 are in jail or in the hospital; and 1 passed away."