As Homelessness Decreases, Further Investments Needed Regionally
Homelessness is ranked among the most pressing issues for Berkeley residents. In a May 2020 community survey, 80% of respondents said affordable housing and homeless services are either extremely or very important. It is one of the top issues constituents call my office about, and indeed is a top priority for my office and the City.
Over the last few years, we have taken a thoughtful approach to addressing the needs of the unhoused population and ultimately creating a pathway to permanent housing. Significant improvements in collaboration with the County, during the COVID pandemic, resulted in housing 1,400 homeless persons/families countywide. Additionally, we have increased investments in anti-displacement and eviction defense programs, helping prevent countless people from entering homelessness. Through these efforts, not only have we successfully stemmed the tide of homelessness, but we are now at a point where more people are exiting homelessness than entering. The work of course is far from over, and no one city can solve homelessness on its own. That is why we are renewing our focus on regional collaboration with a goal of applying the successes here in Berkeley to a countywide level.
Point-In-Time Count Shows Homelessness Declining in Berkeley
Every two years, EveryOne Home conducts a countywide point-in-time count of the unhoused population. The latest count took place on February 22, 2022, three years after the last count due to the pandemic. In the 2019 count, Berkeley had 1,108 homeless, of which 813 were unsheltered. The 2022 count showed that homelessness went down by 5% in Berkeley, with a total of 1,057 individuals counted, 803 of which were unsheltered. Between 2017-2019, homelessness in Berkeley went up 14%.
The unsheltered population includes people living in tents, cars, vans, RVs, or outside with no protection. While the number of people living in tents has increased from 251 to 426, the number of people living outside with no protection has plummeted from 231 to 109. The number of people living in a car or van increased slightly, from 157 to 198, but the number of people living in RVs dropped by 57% from 161 to 69.
While the number of sheltered people dropped from 295 in 2019 to 254 in 2022, this can be attributed to social distancing that was needed in various shelters. It also shows that programs in shelters to move people into permanent housing are working. Countywide, the number of sheltered individuals increased by 53%, while unsheltered increased by 13%. This can be attributed to the purchasing and conversion of multiple hotels throughout the county under Projects Homekey and Roomkey.
Countywide, there was an increase of 22%, rising from 8,022 in 2019 to 9,747 this year. Comparatively, homelessness rose by 43% across the county between 2017-2019. This means that before the pandemic, homelessness was increasing countywide by around 20% each year, but over the last three years has increased at a significantly slower rate. The reason for the countywide slowdown of the unhoused population increases can be attributed to investments in housing and housing policy, closer collaboration between the County and its Cities, in addition to the tenant eviction protections and moratoriums that were implemented during the pandemic.
Recent City Action
A major factor to the decline in homelessness in Berkeley is the immense amount of resources we have placed into addressing the crisis. Berkeley spends more per capita on homelessness than any other jurisdiction in the area. Thanks to Berkeley voters who approved Measure P in 2018, we have raised over $40 million since Fiscal Year 2019 for homeless services, and are projected to generate $12 million annually over the next couple of years. A majority of these funds are spent to operate various shelters, drop-in centers, Project Homekey, and to operate various programs, including the Coordinated Entry System, locker program, Homeless Response Team, Healthcare for the Homeless, and other outreach programs. Measure P is also used for various mental health services, including 5150 (someone experiencing a mental health crisis) response and transport.
Multiple shelters have opened up over the past four years, which also include social services and caseworkers who help guide clients into permanent housing. In June 2018, Berkeley opened the STAIR Center, the first navigation center in the East Bay that has since been used as a model for other cities in the region. In July 2021, the Horizon Transitional Village opened, specifically designed to help people living in encampments get stability and a path to permanent housing. Shortly after, the SPARK (Safe Parking and Respite Kickstart Program) opened next door, which has helped significantly reduce the number of people living in RVs. The City also assisted in the opening of Youth Spirit Artworks’ Tiny House Village, which provides 26 tiny houses for homeless youth aged 18-25 in Berkeley and Oakland. The largest affordable housing development in Berkeley’s history, the Berkeley Way Apartments and Hope Center, will open in September 2022, providing 142 units of affordable housing and a shelter with services. Several acquisitions for new shelters and housing are underway, including the Golden Bear Inn which will be converted into 43 units of permanent supportive housing. The City and UC Berkeley are working with various organizations to establish a new drop-in center and 100 units of supportive housing in Southside, and have secured 42 rooms at the Rodeway Inn.
The COVID-19 pandemic has placed a financial strain on many people, disproportionately impacting low-income families. At the onset of the pandemic and local stay at home order, Council took immediate action to establish an eviction moratorium to ensure that tenants who were unable to pay rent due to the pandemic could not be evicted for lack of payment. We also established the Berkeley Relief Fund, with the city funding $3 million and private donations contributing an additional $1.7 million. These funds were used to support businesses and arts organizations, who in turn were able to continue paying employees, and helped countless tenants with rent relief.
Home Together: A Countywide Approach
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors recently approved the Home Together Community Plan. This plan creates a framework in which the County will work with local cities in a collaborative homelessness response system. $183 million is spent annually on homelessness throughout the county. Despite this, it is estimated that funding needs to be increased by 2 ½ times to meet the existing and future needs of people experiencing homelessness. We will soon be getting additional investments, including a slice from the State’s $12 billion contribution to address homelessness. Also, county voters approved Measure W in 2020, which could generate $150 million annually for homeless services such as housing, mental health, and job training.
Over the next five years, a total of $2.5 billion will need to be invested throughout the county to address and significantly reduce homelessness. Of this, $430 million is needed for new shelters and improved access to mental and behavioral health, $1.68 billion for permanent housing, and $388 million for prevention and rapid re-housing subsidies. Focus will start in reducing the number of unsheltered individuals over the first two years. As new housing options come online, the focus will shift towards bringing people out of shelters and into permanent housing. This can be done by converting existing buildings and hotels into permanent supportive housing, as has successfully been accomplished under Project Homekey, in addition to the creation of new extremely low income housing stock.
Looking Forward
Under the Home Together Community Plan, homelessness across the county is expected to peak in 2023 or 2024. Without this collaborative plan, the trajectory suggests an acceleration of homelessness, increasing to around 17,750 by 2026. Significant investments will continue to be needed, especially as we lose protections implemented during the pandemic and inflation creates additional financial hardship. But here in Berkeley we have developed the systems to help lift people out of homelessness and prevent people from entering homelessness. As the last couple of point-in-time counts have shown, Berkeley is ahead of the curve when it comes to addressing homelessness. By applying the successes here in Berkeley on a countywide level, we can begin to not only see a continuation of the slowdown but a decrease in the homeless population across the county. With cities working together with Alameda County, and continued support from the State, we are now in a position in which we can achieve these goals. It will not be easy, but a task that seemed impossible a few years ago is now within reach.