2007—2009 Progress Report
Housing is a basic necessity, a place to be safe, stable, and from which to grow into one’s potential.
In 2005, concerned residents across Santa Barbara County joined together to form a plan to end our community’s chronic homelessness. While the chronically homeless represent only 10 percent of the homeless population, over 50 percent of the dollars spent in our area fighting homelessness are used on this high-needs group. Our County’s Board of Supervisors, along with the Mayors and City Councils of five cities, unanimously supported this effort and adopted the Plan. Over 100 community members including business persons, government officials, nonprofit social services staff, funders, and interested citizens have been involved in the writing the 10-Year Plan, Bringing Our Community Home (BOCH). It is our intention to move those who are chronic residents of the streets into housing with supportive services, once and for all.
Over the last two years, Santa Barbara County’s 10-Year Plan has gone from being a document capturing the collective vision of many people to the reality of supportive housing and services for the chronically homeless.
2007-2009 saw the development of infrastructure and implementation strategies to bring the goals of the 10-Year Plan to fruition. The achievements of the agencies and individuals engaged in this effort are listed in this report.
The fruits of our labor are evident; since the plan’s inception, 108 units of supportive housing have been built for both individuals and families with 109 more in the pipeline.
Both public and private social service agencies throughout Santa Barbara County are developing new partnerships and strengthening existing relationships as well as communicating more regularly and effectively. Data collection methods capturing services levels and outcomes are being constructed and refined.
Despite the economic crisis communities across the country are facing, the 10-Year Plan continues to raise revenue, and our work will move forward—there is much still to accomplish.
Success stories to date are many and they appear not only as housing for the homeless, but also in the goodwill generated from partnerships between businesses and social service agencies, government and its citizens, funders and the least fortunate. Santa Barbara County can pride itself on the spirit of community collaboration that has characterized BOCH’s work over the past two years.
Most importantly, we can celebrate the lives we have helped change and the extradinordinary efforts made by our homeless neighbors to return to housing and regain hope for the future. Their stories are many; both individuals and families who have struggled for years to navigate life’s sometimes difficult passages.
Along the way we have met people who simply want what we all desire and deserve—a safe place to call home.
Achievements
A case management session at WillBridge; renderings of Artisan Court; a formerly homeless resident at El Carrillo; Independent Living Resource Center case manager views progress at Garden Street Center.
Organizational Development and Implementation
Following the development of the 10-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness in Santa Barbara County, a transition team was put in place to create an implementation strategy, to recruit for and form a Governing Board and to begin fund-raising.
The focus of the implementation strategy is the housing first model, which places homeless persons in housing first, and then provides the supportive services they need to maintain their housing.
The methodology of the implementation strategy is to promote collaboration to build on existing service provider programs. The Homeless Services Locator website was developed to help implement this methodology.
The Governing Board was installed in September, 2007. Fund-raising efforts were successful enough to hire staff and begin work eight months later.
Staffing/Office
BOCH hired a ½ time Executive Director, a ½ time Project Coordinator and a ½ time Administrative Assistant on April 1, 2008. A BOCH office was also opened at the same time, located at 725 Cacique Street in a space shared with the administration of Casa Esperanza. As of April 1, 2009, staffing includes a full-time Executive Director and a ½ time Administrative Assistant.
BOCH Collaborations
In line with the adopted implementation methodology, BOCH staff collaboratesand coordinates with the following: Co-occurring Disorders Task Force organized by Families ACT, the St. Brigid Fellowship homeless assistance program in Isla Vista, Doctors Without Walls which provides street medicine and a free women’s health clinic at Transition House, the UCSB students’ Street Health Outreach Program, the Coordinating Committee for the Homeless at Cottage Hospital, the Homeless Coalition which meets biweekly to discuss ongoing issues the homeless face on the streets, the Homeless Advisory Committees for the South Coast, Lompoc and Santa Maria, ADMHS Cares, the County Public Health Department’s Health Care for the Homeless program, and MHSA Housing Committee. BOCH staff is also assisting the Santa Barbara County Dept. of Housing and Community Development to promote a collaborative approach for the administration of $829,000 in Federal Stimulus Package funds for the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-housing Program.
Communications
BOCH publishes a quarterly newsletter and appears before various organizations and local government bodies to educate about homeless issues, programs and solutions. We maintain our informational website, www.bringsbcohome.org. A new BOCH brochure has also been developed.
People who tell a homeless person, “Pull yourself up by your bootstraps,” do not understand the challenge of reversing course when a life is moving in a downward spiral. What might erroneously be seen as a reluctance to help oneself is actually the recognition that without abundant compassionate help from other people . . . the prospects for success are grim.
Lives have been saved by the creation of housing for the chronically homeless. My own life is one of those which have been rescued by this innovative example of humanitarian concern.
Gary Mueller
Member, BOCH Governing Board
Homeless Service Projects
The collaborative efforts of BOCH staff have assisted in the following:
PROJECT HEALTHY NEIGHBORS provides medical treatment, disease prevention, wellness care and mental health and substance abuse counseling for the homeless in November in preparation for the coming winter months. For the last four years over 100 volunteers, including doctors, nurses, dental medicine and hygiene professionals, more than 20 public and private nonprofit health and social service agencies, students and local community leaders have served over 450 of our homeless neighbors on the South Coast. The next Project Healthy Neighbors event is scheduled for November 16-18, 2009.
HOMELESS SERVICES LOCATOR is a website that provides information on over 50 homeless service agencies in Santa Barbara County, including location, contact information, key personnel, agency website, an agency profile, lists of services provided, and a list of all other agency connections. To review the Homeless Services Locator go to www.bringsbcohome.org, click on the home page and then click on the Locator icon. If you wish to be added to this site contact BOCH, john [at] bringsbcohome.org.
SOUTH COAST HOMELESS PREVENTION RESOURCE GUIDE is the result of over 30 agencies on the South Coast that met for 3 months to share information about what they do to help prevent homelessness. This Guide will soon be on the BOCH website. You can receive a copy by contacting john [at] bringsbcohome.org. Similar resource guides will soon be developed for both the Lompoc and Santa Maria communities.
HOMELESS WOMEN’S SAFETY PROGRAM is a coalition of South Coast homeless
shelters and various law enforcement agencies, formed to ensure that any woman found on the streets at night is provided safe shelter until the next morning. The program provides a point of contact for outreach teams and case workers in the effort to transition women from the streets into permanent supportive housing.
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY JAIL DISCHARGE PLANNING PROGRAM for homeless inmates has been funded for a projected start-up on July 1, 2009. BOCH is working with the Sheriff’s Department to develop a discharge planning process to assist homeless inmates in avoiding release back to the streets. The Discharge Planner will work to identify homeless inmates, and coordinate with case workers to create a plan that will provide necessary services and housing upon release. The Discharge Planner and jail personnel will work to address transportation problems.
Permanent Supportive Housing
A family at Good Samaritan in Santa Maria; HomeBase on G in Lompoc, March 2009.
Permanent Supportive Housing Completed
- El Carrillo Housing Authority of the City of Santa Barbara. 61 SRO units for chronically homeless, South Coast.
- Casa De Familias Good Samaritan. 16 units for chronically homeless families, Santa Maria.
- Casas Las Granadas
Peoples’ Self-Help Housing. 12 low income units, 2 for chronically homeless, South Coast.
- Garden Street Apartments
Mental Health Association in Santa Barbara County. 51 low income units, 10 for chronically homeless, South Coast.
- College Park Lompoc Housing and Community Development Corp. 35 family units, 5 for chronically homeless, Lompoc.
- Park Place Willbridge. Transitional housing. 6 master leased units for chronically
- homeless, South Coast.
- La Morada Santa Barbara County Department of Social Services. 8 transition-aged youth, Lompoc.
Under Development
- Homebase on G Transitions Mental Health Association. 39 low income units, 19 for chronically homeless, Lompoc.
- Rancho Hermosa Good Samaritan. 47 low income units, 12 for chronically homeless families in Santa Maria.
- Artisan Court Housing Authority of the City of Santa Barbara. 55 low income units, 28 for chronically homeless in Santa Barbara.
- Bradley Property Housing Authority of the City of Santa Barbara. 50–60 units, approximately 20 for chronically homeless in Santa Barbara.
- Mom’s Transition House 8 units for families, 6 of those for chronically homeless.
- Casa del Desarrollo Lompoc Housing and Community Development Corp. 19 transition-aged youth, Lompoc.
- Ocean Park Santa Barbara Housing Assistance Corp. 79 units, 5 of those for chronically homeless families, Lompoc.
Total for Chronically Homeless: 217
The United States Interagency Council on Homelessness’ director, Philip Mangano, meets with BOCH board members, social service providers, local citizens and government officals, and members of the homeless community in July 2008.
Photos by Baron Spafford and Zach Johnson. Architectural rendering by Christine Pierron+Mark Wienke. Good Samaritan photo courtesy Good Samaritan, Santa Maria.
This report is dedicated to BOCH’s first Executive Director, Roger Heroux
whose fight for the rights and dignity of the chronically homeless has inspired us all.
Bringing Our Community Home
725 Cacique Street
Santa Barbara, CA 93103
John Buttny, Executive Director
(805) 884-5115 |
