TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
George Gabriel, Senior Management Analyst
SUBJECT:Title
Receive an Update on Homelessness Initiatives and Consider Adopting a Resolution Approving a Memorandum of Understanding Between the City of Manhattan Beach, the City of Redondo Beach and the City of Hermosa Beach Regarding the Implementation of the South Bay Beach Cities Homelessness Project (City Manager Moe).
a) RECEIVE REPORT
b) ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 20-0031
Line
_________________________________________________________
Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council receive a report on homelessness initiatives and adopt Resolution No. 20-0031 approving a Memorandum of Understanding Between the City of Manhattan Beach, the City of Redondo Beach and the City of Hermosa Beach regarding the implementation of the South Bay Beach Cities Homelessness Project.
Body
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
There are no fiscal implications associated with the recommended action.
BACKGROUND:
On March 7, 2017, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors obtained voter approval for a 10-year, ¼ cent sales tax increase to help fund housing and support services for the homeless population throughout the County. Since the passage of Measure H, various cities have taken an active role in addressing homelessness. In October 2017, 47 cities were awarded homelessness planning grants. Manhattan Beach was one of the cities to apply for, receive this funding, and subsequently develop a homelessness plan.
On August 21, 2018, the City Council adopted the City’s “Five-Year Plan to Address Homelessness in Our Community.” The plan contains seven goals aligned with Manhattan Beach’s and Los Angeles County’s objectives to address homelessness. Each of the seven goals contains supplemental information and includes the following elements: 1) Supported actions to achieve each goal; 2) Associated policy changes and requirements to move forward; 3) How progress will be measured; 4) Who is responsible for each goal and its progress; 5) What City resources will be leveraged; and 6) Timeline to complete each goal.
While the cities of Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, and Redondo Beach (collectively the South Bay Beach Cities) each developed its own independent Homelessness Plan, all three cities explored joint efforts to address homelessness. There were common elements including creation of detailed internal city protocols in response to homelessness, creation of consistent system-level response, training for first responders and city staff who have frequent contact with the homeless, strengthening ties with available resources and educating the general public.
Pursuant to City Council authorization in November 2018, and at the recommendation of the homelessness task force, the City submitted a multi-jurisdictional proposal Homelessness Plan Implementation Grant with the cities of Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach.
In April 2019, the Los Angeles County Homeless Initiative announced the award of Measure H grant funding to the South Bay Beach Cities totaling $330,666 towards homeless coordination, training and housing navigation services.
At the September 4, 2019, City Council meeting, the City Council approved a City Homelessness Plan Implementation Grant contract with the County of Los Angeles.
Thereafter, the South Bay Beach Cities developed specifications in order to obtain proposals from qualified service providers to assist in moving people off the streets into interim and permanent housing. These specifications and tasks included but were not limited to:
• Providing a full-time Homeless Coordinator/City Liaison to leverage the cities’ fiscal and administrative resources to systematize, coordinate and help oversee multi-sectoral homeless efforts to enhance and expand regional access to services.
• Developing and implementing internal city-level homelessness response protocols and beach city regional response;
• Tailoring training material and lead training sessions with staff;
• Planning and holding an annual homelessness stakeholder roundtable/community meeting;
• Providing two full-time Homeless Case Managers to assist homeless individuals and families by completing Coordinated Entry System (CES) Assessments, maintaining case notes in Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority’s (LAHSA) Homeless Management Information System (HMIS); and
• Getting participants “document ready;” and make successful referrals to interim housing, treatment centers, and permanent housing.
At the October 15, 2019, meeting, City Council awarded a subcontract to a qualified homeless services firm, Harbor Interfaith Services (HIS), to provide the services described above, until February 28, 2021.
DISCUSSION:
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
As indicated in the background section, the Los Angeles County Homeless Initiative announced the award of Measure H grant funding to the South Bay Beach Cities totaling $330,666 towards homeless coordination, training and housing navigation services.
In order to formalize the partnership and agreement staff from each respective City have reviewed an MOU similar to one drafted by the cities of Claremont, La Verne and Pomona. As a best practice, MOU’s are recommended between cities to clarify expectations and responsibilities from each City.
Staff has attached the agreement for City Council consideration and approval. In summary, the agreement indicates that the South Bay Beach Cities and the County of Los Angeles have been working cooperatively to address issues related to homeless individuals and individuals at risk of homelessness. The Cities’ goal is to decrease homelessness in the three cities by engaging those individuals experiencing homelessness and directing them to essential supportive services to remove barriers of housing and move them into permanent housing.
2020 LAHSA Homeless Count
On January 22, 2020, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) in coordination with the City, conducted the annual homeless count for the cities of Manhattan Beach and El Segundo. This annual count allows stakeholders to receive official statistics on homelessness at a point in time in our community. The public was encouraged to sign up and approximately 50 volunteers came to conduct the counts in Manhattan Beach and El Segundo. Volunteers gathered at the Joslyn Community Center and were given training before beginning the count with their designated teams. Community members, staff, and the respective Police Departments assisted with conducting the count.
On July 30, 2020, LAHSA expects to release the, “2020 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count City and Community Level Results.” The City of Manhattan Beach’s homeless count totaled approximately 15 “unsheltered” persons or individuals living in vehicles, makeshift shelters, tents or the street.This represented a decrease from the prior year, as the homeless count totaled 22 in 2019.In prior years, the homeless counts totaled 41 in 2018 and 6 in 2017.
The decreased count the past two years showcase that the City’s efforts have proven to be successful. Nevertheless, the City continues to take an active role in proactively addressing homelessness. Increases across the County make this a priority for the City to continue to take a proactive role.
Following LAHSA’s statistical analysis, the breakdown of the homelessness count is summarized below and within the attachments.
Unsheltered Persons
Persons on the Street - 6
Persons in Cars - 2.7
Persons in RV’s or Campers - 3.3
Persons in Tents - 1.5
Persons in Makeshift Shelters - 1.3
Total - 14.8
It should be noted that privacy rights of individuals within vehicles prevent homeless count participants to search vehicles for the exact amount of individuals within a vehicle. LAHSA has been diligent to identify the “hidden homeless” within communities that are not easily identifiable or seen. Therefore, LAHSA has created a “conversion factor” formula to account for and tally potential homeless individuals who are not seen and may be within vehicles.
The conversion factor allows LAHSA statisticians to estimate the number of homeless individuals within a vehicle. For example, if three cars are identified as having homeless individuals within the cars by the volunteers, LAHSA applies a conversion factor formula comprised of: 1) the proportion of cars counted occupied by family households, 2) the average number of people sleeping inside the cars with family households, 3) the proportion occupied by individuals, and 4) the average number of people sleeping inside the cars by one or more individuals. For example, under LAHSA’s estimations, the three cars identified at the count, amount to approximately 5.9 homeless individuals accounted for within all cars combined. To view a full analysis on LAHSA’s conversion factors and proportions for vehicle, tents, and makeshift shelters go to this webpage: <https://www.lahsa.org/documents?id=3477-2019-greater-los-angeles-homeless-count-car-van-camper-rv-tent-and-makeshift-shelter-population-conversion-factors.pdf>
Update on HIS Contract and Metrics
Following the City Council award of a subcontract to HIS at the October 15, 2019, City Council meeting, HIS hired full-time staff to satisfy the requirements set forth in the contract. Beginning in January 2020, HIS was fully-staffed and began to complete various objectives.
Metrics
Consistent with the contract, staff tasked HIS with a variety of metrics to ensure goals are met and monitored on a monthly basis. These metrics are included in the agenda packet for your reference as an attachment. It is important to note that during the Coronavirus pandemic, normal homeless services that focus around outreach and housing placement was substantially interrupted. Due to state and county government office closures (i.e. DMV), HIS could not process the paperwork necessary to facilitate continuous housing placement. Therefore, the metrics below represent data from November - June (HIS was fully staffed beginning in January 2020) with significantly interrupted services in the months of March - June, due to COVID-19.
The South Bay Beach Cities Homelessness Project report (attached) summarizes progress made with data metrics.
Staff across all cities continue to meet with HIS to monitor metrics and ensure adequate service delivery for our respective homeless populations. While some metrics are not meeting the desired goals initially set out, HIS is hopeful that government office re-openings will allow for greater housing placements and metrics to track more closely with the goals set out. Additionally, due to the impacts of the coronavirus, the County of Los Angeles recently notified cities that grant funds can be extended from March 2021 to June 2021 to allow for cities to accomplish their homeless goals. City staff expects to process this request with the County, HIS and partner cities by revising term agreements associated with each contract.
Department of Mental Health Program
Staff is regularly evaluating homeless programs at the County of Los Angeles to ensure homeless that have mental health ailments can be assisted. Recently, staff has become aware of programs with the Department of Mental Health (DMH) that are primarily directed at homeless outreach. These include the DMH Homeless Outreach
and Mobile Engagement (HOME) Team and the Outpatient Conservatorship Pilot Program.
HOME Team
The HOME team serves adults who are experiencing homelessness who may be considered gravely disabled (GD). An individual is considered to meet criteria for GD if as a result of a mental illness, is unable to provide, or use resources to provide, for his or her own basic personal needs for food, clothing or shelter to the point of posing an imminent safety risk (e.g. unable to survive safely).
If the individual falls under the GD category, the HOME team will outreach, and provide street interventions or assess for possible 5150 hospitalization (Note: California Welfare and Institutions Code Section 5150, allows a person with a mental illness to be detained for a 72 hour psychiatric hospitalization, where the person is a danger to othersor to self). HOME is not a crisis response team, and the Mental Health Clinician will still be called if individuals are a safety risk. HOME provides case management, resource and referrals, medical intervention, medication evaluation, therapeutic interventions and other supportive services as needed.
Outpatient Conservatorship Pilot Program
In the proposed pilot approved by the County Board of Supervisors on June 23, 2020, individuals experiencing homelessness who are not in imminent danger but considered gravely disabled and refusing voluntary mental health services, maybe pursued by HOME with an application for an outpatient conservatorship.
In addition, for those who are experiencing homelessness and awaiting a conservatorship hearing while in the hospital, the HOME team may work with the hospital treatment team to determine if on-going hospitalization is necessary. These activities may occur if DMH, through the HOME team, determines that the subject person is gravely disabled and that future examination on an inpatient basis is not necessary to determine that the person is gravely disabled. Concurrent with any conservatorship recommendation, DMH will identify appropriate housing or a mental health treatment bed as well as a dedicated treatment team for the prospective conservatee.
Staff has discussed these programs with Supervisor Hahn’s Office as well as DMH and indicated a strong interest in participating. While the HOME team is established, the pilot program is still in its infancy and DMH is not currently offering it to cities. However, the City is working with DMH to ensure the HOME team is a resource to our homeless services provider, HIS.
Community Meeting on Homelessness
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Cities of Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach had scheduled a Community Meeting on Homelessness on March 19. However, due to the cancellation of all City events and gatherings, the event was postponed to a later date. Staff will pursue this event in a digital forum (i.e. Zoom) and update the City Council once a date is determined.
CONCLUSION:
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt Resolution No. 20-0031 approving a Memorandum of Understanding between the City of Manhattan Beach, the City of Redondo Beach and the City of Hermosa Beach regarding the implementation of the South Bay Beach Cities Homelessness Project and receive the update on homelessness initiatives.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has approved the agreement as to form and recommends the City Council allow non-substantive edits to be made with the other parties of the agreement.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Resolution No. 20-0031
2. Memorandum of Understanding - South Bay Beach Cities Homelessness Project
3. South Bay Beach Cities Program Report (November 2019 - June 2020)