Agenda Packet 5-13-19 Joint Work Session

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In Lane County, the number of people experiencing homelessness has been steadily increasing in recent years with a large portion (69%) of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness. Nationally, about a third of people experiencing homelessness (34.5%) are in unsheltered locations, while about two-thirds (65.5%) are in sheltered locations.1 With the high number of people living on the streets, in cars, in tents, and other places not meant for human habitation, it is crucial that Lane County implement well-planned and effective strategies to move people out of homelessness and into safe and secure housing. The Technical Assistance Collaborative (TAC) developed this report as part of a Public Shelter Feasibility study commissioned by Lane County in collaboration with the City of Eugene. The purpose of the study was to assess the crisis response system in Lane County, identify gaps and bottlenecks within the system, and outline best practices and strategies to address areas of need and improvement. This report outlines ten key recommendations for Lane County and its partners to address the current homeless crisis with a particular focus on unsheltered homelessness among single adults. The recommendations include strategies to address system-wide issues as well as the need for low-barrier emergency shelter beds. The key system-wide recommendations are as follows: 1. Expand and better coordinate outreach services by pro- actively engaging people who are on the streets or living in places not meant for human habitation (cars, tents, abandoned buildings, etc.) and connecting them to services – these activities are a key part of ending homelessness in any community. 2. Expand diversion and rapid exit services strategies, which is an emerging practice whereby individuals or families seeking emergency services are immediately engaged in an exploratory conversation to determine if there are alternative options, even if temporary, that would help them avoid or quickly exit literal homelessness. 3. Expand and better coordinate rapid re-housing (RRH) resources. RRH uses a progressive and individualized manner to provide short- to medium-term rental assistance, along with housing-focused services, in an effort to rapidly move households out of homelessness. 4. Create additional permanent supportive housing (PSH) and increase utilization, as Lane County has a significant population of highly vulnerable, long-term homeless individuals in both sheltered and unsheltered situations. The current PSH units throughout the county are underutilized and inadequate in meeting the needs of the community. 5. Implement effective move-on strategies, which are an emerging practice that allows mainstream or other affordable 1 https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/2017-AHAR-Part-2-Section-1.pdf housing subsidies or units to replace the subsidy of a PSH project and thus free up the intensive service package a PSH project has to offer. 6. Expand and increase utilization of tenancy supports. While rental assistance and subsidies are an important component in ending homelessness, tenancy supports also play a critical role in ensuring clients can maintain their housing permanently. 7. Increase effectiveness of coordinated entry. A community’s coordinated entry system is the primary mechanism for ensuring that those experiencing homelessness are connected to interventions that will rapidly end their homelessness. 8. Create centralized and coordinated landlord and housing partner management; landlords and other housing partners are critical stakeholders in the effort to end homelessness. 9. Provide training to ensure implementation of best practices, as training and professional development are critical to any homeless crisis response system. High staff turnover, evolving practices and promising models, unique client needs, and the overall need for highly specialized services all contribute to the need for ongoing training. 10. In addition to the above nine system-wide recommendations, TAC recommends that Lane County develop a new year-round low-barrier emergency shelter to serve 75 people. While increasing emergency shelter beds will help respond to the immediate crisis of unsheltered single adults in the community, without expansion of other system components as well as policy alignment, training, and implementation of best practices across the CoC, the county will be unable to make a significant impact on single adult homelessness. TAC recommends that Lane County capitalize on its existing partnerships with the City of Eugene, local non-profit service providers, the local community, emergency first responders, and elected officials to plan, implement, operate, and evaluate the recommendations in this report. PAGE 1 May 13, 2019, Joint Work Session – Item 1