TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Talyn Mirzakhanian, City Manager
FROM:
George Gabriel, Assistant to the City Manager
Patricia Matson, Management Analyst
SUBJECT:Title
Consideration of Awarding RFP No. 1328-25 and Adopting a Resolution Approving an Agreement with Harbor Interfaith Services Inc. for Homeless Outreach and Housing Navigation Services (City Manager Mirzakhanian).
ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 24-0126
Body
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RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council:
a) Award Request for Proposal (RFP) No. 1328-25 and adopt Resolution No. 24-0126 approving a two-year agreement with Harbor Interfaith Services Inc. (HIS), for homeless outreach and housing navigation services in the amount of $90,413.00 annually.
b) Authorize the City Manager to extend the agreement for one additional year (third year of services).
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Sufficient funding for this agreement is available in the Management Services Department’s budget for the current fiscal year within the General Fund. Future years will be budgeted accordingly.
BACKGROUND:
The City has been utilizing HIS for homeless outreach and housing navigator services since December 2021 in order to assist individuals and families experiencing homelessness in the community. The City’s current agreement with HIS will expire on December 1, 2024.
In anticipation of the agreement’s expiration, staff released RFP No. 1328-25 on August 8, 2024, to explore additional consultants offering the same or similar services. Staff reached out to known consultants to notify them of the RFP after its release. At the close of the August 21, 2024, deadline, staff received one response, which came from HIS. Staff received notice from two additional consultants stating that they would not be submitting proposals due to operational challenges.
DISCUSSION:
The City has been actively working with HIS for five years. In 2019, they were awarded an agreement to provide services to Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, and Redondo Beach for the South Bay Cities Homelessness Project. In 2021, as previously mentioned, they were awarded an agreement to provide the City of Manhattan Beach exclusively with dedicated homeless outreach and housing navigator services.
The services provided by the dedicated outreach worker play a vital role in the City’s ability to effectively assist homeless individuals in the community. The following information reflects data from January 2024-September 2024 and summarizes the reportable work completed by the dedicated outreach worker:
• 435 interactions with homeless individuals (including repeat interactions with the same individuals);
• 82 unique clients assisted;
• 19 clients assisted with document production or enrolled with benefits;
• 19 clients referred into interim housing and specifically placed 18 of those individuals into SHARE! Collaborative Housing;
• Four treatment program referrals attained; and
• Two stable housing placements.
As evidenced by recent data, the City’s decision to engage a homeless outreach and housing navigation service provider has been successful, as Manhattan Beach has experienced consecutive reductions in the number of unhoused individuals counted by Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA). In 2018, when the City began taking an active role in addressing homelessness, the point-in-time count revealed 41 unhoused individuals living in Manhattan Beach. Since then, the number of homeless individuals counted has decreased by year as follows:
• 2018 - 41 individuals
• 2019 - 21 individuals
• 2020 - 15 individuals
• 2021 - Cancelled due to COVID-19 Pandemic
• 2022 - 9 individuals
• 2023 - 9 individuals
• 2024 - 2 individuals
HIS Proposal
Staff has evaluated the proposal submitted by HIS and confirmed that the proposal meets all the City’s requirements. If the proposed agreement is approved, HIS would continue to assist those in need with various services including but not limited to: securing permanent or interim housing, mental health care, medical care, substance abuse treatment, wellness/life skills programs, and income assistance.
The proposed agreement ensures that the City would have access to a dedicated outreach worker, who would exclusively serve the City of Manhattan Beach’s homeless population and will not be a shared resource amongst other cities. The outreach worker would assist homeless individuals in Manhattan Beach and conduct business Monday - Friday, 8:30 AM - 5:30 PM. However, hours may be flexed to conduct outreach in early/late hours, on weekends, or to attend important meetings as needed. Additionally, the City would continue to provide a suitable working space on City premises for the dedicated outreach worker to conduct necessary business and work in close coordination with the City’s homelessness liaison and the Police Department.
While the City has seen a drop in the number of homeless individuals counted during the annual Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority Homeless Count, the City’s current dedicated outreach coordinator continues to have at least two to four daily interactions with homeless individuals and actively manages approximately 10 clients interested in services at one time. Additionally, by assisting several transient individuals, the provider’s efforts indirectly benefit the greater South Bay region. .
Proposed Contract Terms
Staff is recommending a two-year agreement with HIS, with the option to extend the agreement for one additional year. The consultant shall not be paid more than $90,413.00 annually. The compensation includes:
• Annual salary, taxes, and benefit costs for HIS’s contract supervisor ($9,030.00) and the dedicated outreach and housing navigator ($67,500.00);
• Annual staff administrative fees ($5,882.40);
• Annual reimbursable costs for mileage, office supplies, and technology ($6,000.00); and
• Annual reimbursable costs related to client aid assistance such as: application fees, security deposit assistance, etc. ($2,000.00).
The proposed annual compensation is a $10,212.40 increase from the current agreement with HIS, which includes a not-to-exceed amount of $80,200.00. The net changes to the agreement are due to the following:
• Addition of the contract supervisor (+$9,030.00)
• Increase in salary for the outreach and housing navigator (+$2,499.96)
• Increase in staff administrative fees (+$682.44)
• Decrease in reimbursable costs (-$2,000.00)
Outside Funding Sources
Staff continues to seek external funding sources to subsidize the services associated with this agreement. Staff has explored the State’s Proposition 1 funds (Behavioral Health Services Program and Bond Measure) and other potential funding from the County of Los Angeles provided to the SBCCOG. Currently, no outside funding has been identified that could offset costs associated with the proposed HIS agreement.
CONCLUSION:
Staff recommends that the City Council:
a) Award Request for Proposal (RFP) No. 1328-25 and adopt Resolution No. 24-0126 approving a two-year agreement with Harbor Interfaith Services Inc. (HIS), for homeless outreach and housing navigation services in the amount of $90,413.00 annually; and
b) Authorize the City Manager to extend the agreement for one additional year (third year of services).
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
After analysis, staff determined that public outreach was not required for this issue.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The City has reviewed the proposed activity for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that the activity is not a “Project” as defined under Section 15378 of the State CEQA Guidelines; therefore, pursuant to Section 15060(c)(3) of the State CEQA Guidelines the activity is not subject to CEQA. Thus, no environmental review is necessary.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has approved the agreement as to form.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Resolution No. 24-0126
2. Agreement - Harbor Interfaith Services Inc.