East County Cities' Lack of Response to Homelessness*

East County cities have marginal involvement in homeless issues. <b>Response:</b> Disagree. The City of Santee cannot speak to the level of involvement of other east county cities. However, Santee has much more than "marginal involvement" in homeless issues. Below are examples of Santee's most notable contributions. 10601 Magnolia Avenue • Santee, California 92071 • (619) 258-4100 • www.cityofsantee.ca.gov , y 4 9 % Grand Jury Report: East County Homelessness August 15, 2016 Partnership with Crisis House The City of Santee currently partners with and provides funding to Crisis House, who provides humanitarian services to citizens who are socioeconomically disadvantaged, and whose mission is to stabilize families and individuals to break the cycle of poverty, domestic violence and homelessness by providing emergency assistance, housing, and social services that promote self- sufficiency. Crisis House also coordinates a seasonal nighttime shelter, provides counseling and referrals for homeless and persons at risk of homelessness, and provides emergency shelter to victims of domestic violence. They also recently received a federal grant to expand transitional housing opportunities, particularly for veterans. The City of Santee has consistently partnered with and provided funding to Crisis House for homeless related services dating back to 1993 ($5,000 was allocated this fiscal year, not $2,000 as identified in the Grand Jury report). Crisis House is located in East County and focuses on serving residents throughout the east county region. Each year, Crisis House reports on the number of persons assisted in Santee, which includes Santee residents and homeless who reside in Santee. Reports show that over 3,300 persons have been assisted since 2010. Services can range from providing referrals over the phone to providing emergency housing. Support to the Regional Task Force on the Homeless Santee provides $2,500 each year in support of the Regional Task Force on the Homeless, which is described by the Task Force as Santee's fair share to support their activities. On several occasions, Santee staff and elected officials have also accompanied the Regional Task Force on the Homeless during their annual point-in-time homeless count to better understand these efforts and learn more about the homeless population in Santee. <u>Implementation & Participation on the East Region Homeless Outreach Team (HOT)</u> The Santee Sheriff's Department and the City of Santee implemented the East Region Homeless Outreach Team (HOT) in 2014/2015, which is a collaborative partnership between the San Diego County Sheriff's Department, the El Cajon Police Department, Health and Human Services Agency and Psychiatric Emergency Response Team. The Santee Sheriff's Station has the primary administrative responsibility for coordinating the East Region HOT activities, and works closely with Santee staff and elected officials. The goals of the Team are to lead a collaborative effort while providing a humanistic and socially responsive approach to improving the quality of life for chronically homeless individuals; to assist the chronically homeless populations of the east county region in developing a plan to end their homelessness; and to ensure a safe environment for homeless and non-homeless populations in the east county. The City's contribution to the Homeless Outreach Team (HOT) is comprised of six law enforcement deputies and one sergeant. The County provides a Psychological Emergency Support Team (PERT) clinician and Health and Human Services Agency workers who accompany the HOT team on all HOT efforts. The Santee Sheriff's Department actively seeks out homeless persons on a weekly basis in an attempt to connect them with available resources. The overarching goal is to help the homeless population reintegrate into society. Deputies provide an informational pamphlet to every homeless 1410 Grand Jury Report: East County Homelessness August 15, 2016 person they have contact with in the City of Santee. This pamphlet provides specific information on resources for employment assistance; medical assistance; transitional housing and shelters; clothing, and bedding; recovery and rehabilitation services; assistance for veterans and victims of domestic violence; and other east county resources, such as contact information for Crisis House and 2-1-1 San Diego. Homeless Outreach Teams throughout the County have received national recognition for their work with the chronically homeless, and were mentioned in an Urban Institute report pointing to this strategy as a model for other regions (The Urban Institute 2004, Strategies for Reducing Chronic Street Homelessness). RESPONSE TO RECOMMENDATIONS