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SR-012886-11A (2)C/ED:CD:MK:wp Council Meeting January 28, 198b T0: Mayor and City Council FROM: City Staff r~- ~ ,ypK 2 g 986 ~r~ ~~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ Santa Monica, C<~lifornia SUBJECT: Recommendation to Consider Expanded Programs to the Homeless and to the Frail Elderly in the Context of the 1986--87 Community Development Program Budget INTRODUCTION This report transrr~its information regarding the status of funds set aside in the 1986--87 Community Development Program for expanded programs for the horr~eless and for the frail elderly. The report summarizes proposals submitted by local organizations in response to "Requests for Proposals" (RFP's) issued in Noverr~ber of 1985 and recommends that two of these programs be considered for funding in the next fiscal year. BACKGROUND On May 29, 1985, the City Council adopted the 1985--86 Community Development Plan which included the award of funds to a range of community service agencies. In addition, the Council set aside $1PJ4,395 in General Funds to be used for expanded services to homeless individuals and to frail elderly residents and directed staff to issue Request for Proposals (RFPs) in these two program areas. ~/ r /y JR& 2 g 1 `966 -- 1 -- Due to the uncertainty regarding the level of Federal funding the City would receive in the current fiscal year, these funds were set aside until the status of this funding became clearer and there were strong indications that current funding would not be cut. In November 1985, with Federal funding seemingly secure through FY 1985--85, staff followed Council direction and issued two RFPs to currently---funded agencies: one for expanded services to frail elderly residents and one for expanded services to homeless persons. The deadline for proposal submission was December 16, 1985. By the Decerr~ber 16th deadline, a total of six proposals was received: four horr~eless proposals and two frail elderly proposals {see Attachment I for proposal summaries). Complete copies of all proposals are available for Council review in the Council office. DISCUSSION On Decerr~ber 11, 1985, the Gramm-Rudman--Hollings Deficit Reduction Plan, H.J. Res. 372 (P.L.99--177), was passed, and signed the following morning on December 12. While it is uncertain what specific cuts will be faced by the City as a result of this law, the impact on Community Development Block Grant and General Revenue Sharing Programs, which are authorized only through Septerr~ber 1986, is expected to be significant. Additional inforrr~ation on projected cuts and their impact on the Community Development Program was included in the recent staff report on the coming year's funding rationale. -- 2 -- This uncertainty about Federal funding has not only made it difficult to plan for the 1986--87 fiscal year, but it has also necessitated a change in the approach for reviewing the six proposals which were going to be considered for funding in the current year. Staff first identified the most meritorious programs in terms of their ability to address identified service needs, their program design and cost effectiveness. Selection criteria used in this evaluation are included as Attachment II. After identifying the most competitive proposals, staff then considered the availability of funding and the timing for possible implementation of the selected programs. The results of these two steps are detailed in the following sections. (1) Review of Proposals Attachment III provides a description and brief analysis of all proposals submitted. After careful review, staff has identified two prograrr~s that are especially meritorious and successfully met the selection criteria: Westside Independent Services to the Elderly (WISE) -- In--Home Assistance Program: Consistent with the recon~n~endation by the Commission on Older Americans to allocate City funds for a "home chore" or "homemaker aide" program for frail elderly residents, this program would provide homemaker/personal care training for individuals desiring to provide these in--home services; a "matching" service for trained aides and homebound seniors needing assistance; and the hiring of three home/health aides to provide assistance to those individuals identified by WISE as 3 -- rr~ost in need. This program addresses a glaring deficiency in the current network of services to the homebound senior and will enhance elderly residents' ability to continue living independently. Ocean Park Community Center (OPCC) --- Daybreak: Consistent with recomrr~endations rr~ade by the City's Working Group on the Homeless for such services, this two--corr~ponent prograrr~ provides for an outreach tearr~ of two social service advocates and a half--time counselor and for a day center for horr~eless women and children. The outreach tearr~ would work closely with homeless individuals in the City's public parks and other public areas, providing crisis intervention and social service information and referral to these individuals. Close ties will be established with the Santa Monica Police Departrr~ent, other social service and rr~ental health agencies, and the business community. The proposed outreach tearr~ differs frorr~ the new "outreach services" provided through St. John's Hospital and funded entirely from private donations. This part--time program provides consultation to agencies serving the homeless with staff coming to these agencies to evaluate clients. They do not do outreach to parks and public areas. The proposed OPCC team would work in these public areas, establishing bonds of trust with very isolated individuals. As these individuals are eventually referred to services at agencies, St. John's staff would be available to consult with the agency and provide psychiatric services at these sites. Project contingencies, included in Attachrr~ent III, address the need for the two agencies to -- 4 -- coordinate these related efforts and to assess the feasibility of coordinating requests for County funding. The request for a day center for women and children did not propose a specific site but did document a high level of private sector support through the recent award of a grant from the Weingart Foundation. This program would provide day shelter, showers and counseling support for homeless worr~en, many of whom would be identified by the outreach team and referred to the center. While this component of the prograrr~ successfully net selection criteria, the inability of the applicant to identify a site at the time of application resulted in a lower staff assessment than the outreach team. However, if a site is identified it should be considered as a logical and important "next step" for those women receiving assistance from the outreach team. The ultimate success of the team will depend on the availability of other supportive services, including the proposed day center. The need for both programs has been clearly documented. The recent public hearing on homeless issues conducted by the City Council indicated a high level of support for an outreach tean~ and day center. In addition, while the needs of homebound seniors are not as apparent to the public, the absence of homechore services has diminished the ability of many Santa Monica residents to remain in their homes. Additional infor~r~ation on these proposed programs and any suggested funding contingencies are included in Attachment III. -- 5 -- (2~ Availability of Funding and Timing of Prograrr~ Implerr~entation A careful review of the two successful proposals indicates that the prioritized services could be supported by the current year's allocation of $1414,395 for a five--month period. If funded as proposed, the annualized cost of these services would be approximately $2441,04141 with the following breakdown by component: Outreach Team $72,000 Day Center 72,000 Horr~echore Services 96,000 While $104,395 has been set aside for these programs in the current year and is a part of the "on--going base" of support for community service grants, a number of factors has resulted in a staff recommendation that these new services not be irr~plemented in the current year but be given rr~aximum consideration for the 1986--87 fiscal year, beginning July lst. Service levels and specific funding levels would be determined within the context of the 1986-87 grant review process. Factors considered in reaching this recomrr~endation include: o the uncertainty of Federal funding available to support 1986--87 community service grants and the possibility of a 40o decrease in funds available for these grants; o The possibility of having to make substantial cuts to ongoing prograrr~s in 1986--87; o the need to provide a certain degree of stability to newly funded programs at the onset. Starting new programs for -- 6 -- five months, in light of pending funding cuts, does not ensure this stability; o the need to coordinate the City's funding efforts for expanded homeless services with other governmental entities. The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health is currently in the process of allocating $2(~0, Pl(~a in State funds to the Santa Monica area for services to homeless chronically mentally ill individuals, City staff have recently initiated discussions with county and state officials to emphasize the need to coordinate funding efforts. While deferral of a specific funding decision on these two programs is proposed at this time, the staff recommendation also recognizes the critical need for these services and the track record and experience of applicants in implementing quality programs. Staff's review indicates that these proposals will be highly competitive with currently--funded programs during the 1986--87 grant funding process. BUDGET/FINANCIAL IMPACT This recommendation will result in a savings to the General Fund of $114, 395 in account number 0~1~20P1--262--af~~1--651. RECOMMENDATIONS City staff recommends that City Council approve the inclusion of the proposals submitted by OPCC for services to the homeless and by WISE for homemaker services to the frail elderly in the 1986--87 Community Development Progran~ review. It is further -- 7 -- recommended that these proposals compete equally with currently--funded programs. Prepared by: Barbara Stinchfield, Community Development Manager Maggie Kennedy, Grants Adrr~inistrator Departrr~ent of Com~r~unity and Economic Development g Reference Contract Nos. 4644 (CCS) and 4645 (CCS).