Minutes 05-12-2015 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Jamie Rohe said this is the very reason there must be a Community dialogue between all stakeholders. She said if a preference were to be given to those experiencing homelessness, it may change their rank on the waiting list. Commissioner Dorosin said this conversation highlights a more fundamental issue, which is the need to prioritize more affordable housing units. He said the prospect of getting the private market to be more amenable to renting to those at risk of homelessness is a losing battle. He said it would be ideal to have low income housing integrated into regular market housing, but that goal may have to be sacrificed in order to simply increase the amount of low income housing available. Jamie Rohe said the past Housing Director, Tara Fikes, said if the apartment complexes are no longer taking vouchers, then individual landlords need to be approached. She said she has heard many people say this same message. Jamie Rohe said more affordable rental housing must be built, as the current housing status is in crisis mode. She said the battle has to be fought on several fronts: increasing housing, recruiting more landlords, etc. She said the creation of a Housing Locator Specialist Position would help greatly. She said there is a duplication of efforts across the County to find affordable housing for their clients; and a housing locator position would be able to recruit landlords, and maintain good relationships with them. She said this position would help reduce duplication efforts and would maintain relationships with providers and clients, as they provide housing for the homeless. Commissioner Price asked if Jamie Rohe's role in this plan could be explained. Jamie Rohe said she is not a service provider or a housing provider, but rather she is the Homeless Programs Coordinator. She said she is responsible for applying for the funds, writing the grants, staffing all the work groups, collecting data, and using that data effectively. She said she brings groups together to work collaboratively, and to implement best practices. Commissioner Price asked if homelessness has been reduced. Jamie Rohe said that no, homelessness has not been reduced. She said their data has not been good enough to know how homelessness is changing in the area. Jamie Rohe said the numbers of unsheltered homeless has dropped significantly in the past several years, due to people getting into permanent supportive housing. She said the overall numbers for homelessness have not gone down, and that homelessness is an indicator of extreme poverty. Commissioner Price said the information in the abstract did not mention much about training and employment. Jamie Rohe said the Plan to End Homelessness has three parts to it, and her presentation this evening is only focusing on the housing component. She said she would welcome the opportunity to return and talk about the other parts. Bonnie Hammersley said Jamie Rohe's position is funded by all four government entities. She said there is a lot of overlap between governmental entities, and that is why Jamie's position was moved from the Housing Department to the Manager's office. Bonnie Hammersley said she has some responses to share in the Budget discussion next week. Commissioner Jacobs said there was a presentation from Affordable Housing Advisory Board, about a year ago. He said this Board asked for funding for one of its members to act as a clearinghouse for affordable housing opportunities in Orange County. He asked if there was an update on this topic. Jamie Rohe said the proposal for the Orange County Clearinghouse Network has some good elements to it; however, clearinghouse networks are notoriously hard to maintain. She said this process did not work well at the Federal level. She said it must be considered why these are not working, and what is needed in order to succeed. She said there must be a