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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0123.006 2022-2024 COUNTY CLERKC� ca1. 12 COUNTY OF UAW 'I VE 1 ate liho P E A 2 1 2121 E TESTIMONY IN SUPPORT CSE RESOLUTION 61-23 T awai'i County Council Chair Kimball,Vice-Chair Inaba,and Members FROM: Brandee Menino, CEO,Hope Services Hawaii,Inc. HEARING: County Council on March 23,2023 Aloha, My name is Brandee Menino and I am the CEO of HOPE Services Hawaii,which is Hawaii Island's largest nonprofit homeless services provider. Our team uses evidence-based practices to help our neighbors avoid and overcome homelessness, and we achieve above-average results in helping people get housed and stay housed. I am testifying in support of Resolution 61-23, which authorizes the Office of Housing and Community Development to award funds to various nonprofit organizations for programs addressing housing and homelessness. We are so pleased that our county is undertaking a historic effort toward addressing the homelessness and affordable housing crisis. Our organization is among the 13 Hawaii Island nonprofits selected to utilize this funding, and we want to express our gratitude to the council for supporting the effective programming that will be funded by these grants. For the council and our community members'review, we have appended a list and description of project activities and intended outcomes afforded through this opportunity as Attachments A and B. While HOPE Services is the largest homeless service organization on Hawaii Island, we do not do our work alone. Through strong partnerships with other providers, we have worked hard to strengthen our community response to homelessness, including by assisting partners with grant applications,policy setting, and workflow development, so that our partners could increase their capacity to provide housing-focused programs and help improve our community homeless response system. HOPE Services is uniquely positioned within our community to test evidence-informed interventions, and we're committed to scaling up programs that have been proven successful.As an agency, we utilize two distinct data sets to assess community needs, ensure program effectiveness, and adjust program reach to make homelessness more rare, brief and nonrecurring. Together, these data help to establish a baseline of understanding our community needs, and help us to evaluate our program delivery. We have appended a brief summary of performance data and service outcomes that assist our agency and the community of homeless service providers to establish a baseline of need (Attachment C) along with the most recent data to demonstrate our ", Ref.ToJl,"61 Ref. Date MAR 2 2 2023 *er v i Ge s island and neighbor-island community's collective achievements and reach (Attachment D)that assist in evaluation and program planning. This funding allows us to continue to build our capacity to serve our community still recovering from COVID,with many exacerbated vulnerabilities, and with growing unaffordability. This funding provides 15%of our agency budget, with 85%covered through braided federal, state, and philanthropic resources, as well as rental revenue. Island-wide, with both projects combined, this investment supports the following programs (portion of awarded funding): • Outreach (I I%) • Housing (43%) • Shelter(24%) • Clinical/Behavioral Health (19%) • Diversion (3%) The last few years have been difficult for all of us, and our neighbors with the fewest resources have suffered the most. We've heard the adage, "We're not in the same boat, but we are in the same storm." I am proud to be part of a community that has chosen to move forward with compassion and accountability, taking the lessons learned during the pandemic, and taking action by investing in services with a successful track record. Our investment today means that we ALL will be better equipped to weather the storms of tomorrow. I am happy to answer questions, and I invite you to reach out and schedule a visit to our facilities, and/or a ridealong with our street outreach team. Mahalo nui for being a part of the solution. Sincerely, Brandee Menino, Chief Executive Officer ATTACHMENT A Project:Scaling Housing Interventions with Behavioral Health Supports in East Hawaii Project Activities:The following chart outlines general activities,by component/intervention,of the"Scaling Housing Interventions with Behavioral Health Supports in East Hawaii"project. Component General Activi Prevention/ The prevention of homelessness and diversion of people entering the homeless response system is an evidence-informed best practice to Diversion reduce both recidivism and new utilization of homeless services.Diversion specialists aim to resolve housing crises immediately. Outreach Mobile outreach is an evidence-informed intervention that reaches people where they're at—living unsheltered in places not meant for human habitation—to foster trusting relationships conducive to service entry.In direct response to community requests,an additional staff designated to provide outreach in downtown Hilo will help reduce the incidence of unsheltered homelessness. Clinical/ HOPE is committed to its clinical behavioral health strategic goals to incorporate strengthened provisions and continuums of care to Behavioral support high-needs community members.HOPE continues to evolve to better serve Hawaii island through the expansion of the clinical Health behavioral Health program,including: I)the Homeless Intensive Case Management Program(HICM)with Adult Mental Health Program Division(AMHD)to provide intensive case management for homeless individuals that are frequent flyers to hospitals with minimally three 3 admits in either a hospital setting or three 3 or more arrests.The purpose of this program is to decrease hospital admits and arrest, stabilize individuals with medications,housing and working toward an Assertive Community Act Program(ACT)in the very near future;2)the Stabilization and Intensive Case Management(SICM)Program with AMHD to provide immediate supports to adults in crisis in response to Hawaii CARES line placements;3)the Community Integration Services(CIS)program with the State MedQuest office and MedQuest health plans to provide pre-and post-tenancy supports to PEH with specific medical/behavioral conditions,and 4) working closely with subcontractors to ensure our program impacts are aligned with clinical best practices. Shelter In our community,the demand and priority for long-term permanent housing has resulted in limited conventional"transitional"housing units available on-island,thus shelter plays a critical role to ensure families and individuals can get offthe streets and into secured,safe, temporary dwellings while working toward permanent housing options.HOPE shelters meet and often exceed site and conformance standards established by the State of Hawaii Homeless Programs Office(HPO).East Hawaii shelters include the East Hawaii Emergency Shelter Program(Hale Maluhia)for women and adult couples;the Sacred Heart Shelter for kupuna,or senior citizens;and the Kihei Pua emergency family shelter. Housing Permanent housing is the ultimate goal of all HOPE programs and services.Ending homelessness is only accomplishable through access to affordable housing.Ensuring people successfully remain in housing is especially critical in the first two years ofliousing.Housing programs are delivered through Permanent Supportive Housing(PSH)projects in a single site,and in scattered sites across the community.Continual work is needed to ensure the affordable housing inventory meets the needs of vulnerable community members. Major activities of this component are to ensure adequate case management availability,strengthened partnerships with landlords,and additional lease-up opportunities. 1 HOPE Services Hawaii,Inc. ATTACHNIENT A Project:Scaling Housing Interventions with Behavioral Health Supports in East Hawaii Intended Outcomes:This project meets six(6)Roadmap Priorities.Many activities meet one or more priorities.To demonstrate the planned sequence of events to generate benefits to our community experiencing homelessness and the community at-large,activities and timeline,per component and aligned with roadmap priorities,are displayed below(adapted from the basic logic model developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.) nputsctivities Outputs' Goal Outcome riarity -Landlord Incentive (1)housing/landlord incentives, Month 1-3:engage with existing Fund (2)increase housing units landlords -Staffing: through master leasing;(3) Months 1-10:campaign to highlight Communications stag, establish a rental remediation landlord incentives Increase housing Increase the property manager, fund to repair damages,help get Month 3-5:planning for landlord options for people number of PSH Maintenance assistant units to ass HUD H S meetin s Permanent p Q g with complex and units inspection and maintain Months 6-10: Landlord Meetings co-occurring Supportive properties/maintain needs,most of Housing and relationships with property Permanent owners whom are Housing with experiencing Supports Staffing:Case Support successful housing Provide housing supports to an chronic Managers;Property retention through case additional 50 households homelessness Manager:Maintenance management,ensuring units are Decrease chronic homelessness Assistant sate/adequate for housing,and Program supplies support tenancy skills Prevention/diversion Prevent homelessness and Assist 125 additional families across staff divert entry into the homeless 10-month period -Program supplies response system among Aleasurernent:internal spreadsheet, families HAIIS Staffing:Housing Provide immediate safety and Assist 40 families to end their Reduce the Decrease Housing, Navigators(shelter/ shelter to families,and homeless episode and enter homelessness Supporting,and interim housing); housing-focused focused service intergenerational g- permanent housing across 10-month impacts of amongst families Serving Families Maintenance assistant; provisions to end homelessness. period homelessness with minor with minor Program supplies Measurement HMIS children children Provide food security and supportive services to 60 families across 10-month period 2 HOPE Services Hawaii,Inc. ATTACHMENT A project:Scaling Housing Interventions with Behavioral Health Supports in East Hawaii Inputs- ctwities Outputs` Goal Outcome Priority Measurement:HMIS, internal spreadsheet Landlord Incentive (1)housing/landlord incentives, Month 1-3:engage with existing Fund (2)increase housing units landlords -Staffing: through master leasing,(3) Months 1-10:campaign to highlight Increase the ommunications staff, establish a rental remediation landlord incentives number of housing Number of IncreasingSupply property manager, fund to repair damages,help get Month 3-5:planning for landlord units that are affordable pp y maintenance assistant units to pass HUD HQS meetings affordable to low- housing units of Affordable inspection and maintain Months 6-10:Landlord Meetings and very low increases Housing properties/maintain income PEH relationships with property owners -Staffing:Case Support successful housing Provide housing supports to 125 Managers;Property retention through case households Reduce chronic Decrease in Manager;Maintenance management,ensuring units are homelessness chronic Assistant safe/adequate for housing,and homelessness -Program supplies support tenancy skills Housing, Staffing:Housing Provide immediate safety and Provide food security and supportive Supporting and Navigators shelter to people experiencing services to 200 families across Serving shelter/interim chronic homelessness,and 10-month period Individuals and ousina ;Maintenance Increase in the b) provide housing-focused Measurement.HMIS,internal Couples assistant; service provisions to end spreadsheet Reduce the number of Experiencing Program supplies homelessness. impacts of chronic chronically Chronic Assist 200 chronically homeless homelessness on homeless peopleHomelessness adults to become document ready to the community accessing housing enter permanent housing across and supports 10-month period Measurement:HMIS -Operating Costs: Identify,register,and attend Staff across organization attend Build and sustain Supporting the rainings tramings trainings aligned with Housing First, capacity in the Increase staff Homelessness and harm reduction,trauma-informed non-profit sector retention in the Housing Support care,and other best practice for agencies that sector Workforce in the methodologies have direct contact Non-Profit Sector 3 HOPE Services Hawaii,Inc. ATTACHMENT A Project:Scaling Housing Interventions with Behavioral Health Supports in East Hawaii Inputs ctivities Outputs Goal Outcome Priority and engagement Improved service with PEN outcomes through improved knowledge -Staffing:Housing New position to provide Provide services to an additional 50 Increase in people navigator staff outreach coverage exclusively participants across 10-month period with special needs (outreach) in Downtown Hilo Measurement:HMIS Ensure various accessing Program supplies suhpopulations are homelessness well served services Supporting People through the with Special Clinical/Behavioral Deliver care for people with Provide screening,assessments,triage response to Increase in people Needs Health staff.Contracted co-occurring disorders,medical and care to 200 participants across housing needs and with special needs provider,Team Leader, needs,and/or chronic disease 10-month period homelessness accessing housing ICM staff,CIS staff Measurement HMIS,CaseWorihy -Program supplies EHR.internal spreadsheet 4 HOPE Services Hawaii,Inc. ATTACHMENT B Project:Scaling Housing Solutions&Support Services in Fest Hawaii Project Activities:The following chart outlines general activities,by component/intervention,of the"Scaling Housing Solutions and Support Services in West Hawaii"Project. Component General Activity Prevention/ The prevention of homelessness and diversion of people entering the homeless response system is an evidence-informed best practice to Diversion reduce both recidivism and new utilization of homeless services.Diversion s ecialists aim to resolve housing crises immediately. Outreach Mobile outreach is an evidence-informed intervention that reaches people where they're at—living unsheltered in places not meant for human habitation—to foster trusting relationships conducive to service entry.Additional direct service staff and supervision will bring outreach to scale in West and North Hawaii communities. Resource Resource centers provide access to immediate,basic needs among people experiencing unsheltered homelessness,and provide a safe Center environment to enter into trusting relationships with program staff to begin working toward ending homeless episodes.The Friendly Place Resource Center is a critical program in Kailua-Kona,serving more than 100 people/month.With a growing business community surrounding the site,resource center enhancements include additional staffing resources to increase hours to 8am-4pm Monday through Friday. Shelter In our community,the demand and priority for long-tern permanent housing has resulted in limited conventional"transitional"housing units available on-island,thus shelter plays a critical role to ensure families and individuals can get off the streets and into secured,safe, temporary dwellings for participants while working toward permanent housing options.HOPE shelters meet and often exceed site and conformance standards established by the State of Hawaii Homeless Programs Office(HPO).The West Hawaii Emergency Housing Program provides semi-private units to serve adults experiencing homelessness. Housing Pennanent housing is the ultimate goal of all HOPE programs and services.Ending homelessness is only accomplishable through access to affordable housing.Ensuring people successfully remain in housing is especially critical in the first two years of housing.Housing programs are delivered through Permanent Supportive Housing(PSN)projects in a single site,and in scattered sites across the community.Continual work is needed to ensure the affordable housing inventory meets the needs of vulnerable community members. Major activities of this component are to ensure adequate case management availability,strengthened partnerships with landlords,and additional lease-uopportunities. Intended Outcomes:This project meets six(6)Roadmap Priorities.Many activities meet one or more priorities.To demonstrate the planned sequence of events to generate benefits to our community experiencing homelessness and the community at-large,activities and timeline,per component and aligned with roadmap priorities,are displayed below(adapted from the basic logic model developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.) Inputs Activities Outputs Goal Outcome Priority, -Landlord Incentive (1)housing/landlord Month 1-3:engage with existing Increase housing Permanent Fund incentives,(2)increase landlords options for people -Staffing: housing units through master Months 1-10:campaign to with complex and Increase the Supportive Communications staff, leasing;(3)establish a rental highlight landlord incentives co-occurring number of PSH Housing and property manager, remediation fund to repair Month 3-5:planting for landlord needs,most of units Permanent Housing maintenance assistant damages,help get units to pass meetings whom are with Supports 1 HOPE Services Hawaii,Inc. ATTACHME T 13 Project:Scaling housing Solutions&Support Services in NIVest Hawaii Inputs Activities Outputs : Goal outcome Priority HUD HQS inspection and Months 6-10:Landlord Hosted experiencing maintain properties/maintain Meetings chronic relationships with property homelessness owners -Staffing:Case Support successful housing Provide housing supports to 25 Managers;Property retention through case households Decrease chronic Manager;Maintenance management,ensuring units homelessness Assistant are safe/adequate for housing, -Program supplies and support tenancy skills -Landlord Incentive (1)housingAandlord Month 1-3:engage with existing Fund incentives,(2)increase landlords -Staffing: housing units through master Months 1-10:campaign to Increase the Communications staff, leasing:(3)establish a rental highligbt landlord incentives number of housing Number of IncreasingSupply property manager, remediation fund to repair Month 3-5:planning for landlord units that are affordable PP y of Affordable maintenance assistant damages,help get units to pass meetings affordable to low- housing units HUD HQS inspection and Months 6-10:Landlord Meetings and very low increases Housing maintain properties/maintain income PEH relationships with property owners -Staffing:Housing Provide increased access to Connections and resources offered Increase in PEN Navigators(in-reach) meals-basic food,additional Monday through Friday from connected to the -Program supplies time to use the bathroom, 8am-4pm,increased by 25 hours Improve service Coordinated Entry laundry,showers,document per weekaccess and service Process for readiness,searching for options for PEH to housing One Stop Housing and Services options for people housing,employment etc. get the help they Increased service through staff recruitment and need to exit Resource Center retention to allow longer homelessness currently service hours experiencing homelessness -Staffing:Case Support successful housing Provide housing supports to 25 Reduce chronic Decrease in Housing, Managers:Property retention through case households homelessness chronic Supporting and management,ensuring units homelessness I Serving Individuals 2 HOPE Services Hawaii,Inc. ATTACHMENT t3 Project:Scaling Housing Solutions&Support Services in West Hawaii Inputs Activities Outputs Goal outcome Priority` Manager;Maintenance are safe/adequate for housing, and Couples Assistant and support tenancy skills Experiencing -Program supplies Chronic -Staffing:Safety Provide immediate safety and Provide food security,help with Homelessness Monitors shelter to people experiencing employment,and supportive Increase in the (shelter/interim chronic homelessness,and services to 60 households across Reduce the impacts number of housing);Maintenance provide housing-focused 10-month period of chronic chronically assistance; service provisions to end Measured:HMIS homelessness on homeless people internal the community accessing housing -Program supplies homelessness. spreadsheet and supports -Pay differential Modified compensation is Months 1-2:Recruit staff persons necessary to secure/retain staff delivering care and connection to in West Hawaii.Raising staff housing through outreach,resource Increase staff pay to up-to$25/hr. center,clinical/behavioral health Build and sustain retention in the programs,and interim capacity in the sector Supporting the housing/shelter,housing assistance, non-profit sector Homelessness and and case management. for agencies that Housing Support Measured:Human Resources have direct contact Workforce in the -Operating Costs: Identify,register,and attend Staff across organization attend and engagement Non-Profit Sector Trainings trainings trainings aligned with Housing with PEH Improved service outcomes through First,harm reduction, improved trauma-informed care,and other knowledge best practice methodologies -Staffing:Team Leader Recruit staff to increase Provide services to an additional 60 Increase in people (outreach);Housing capacity in West/North Hawaii participants across 10-month period Ensure various with special needs navigator staff to address unsheltered Measurement:HMIS subpopulations are accessing (outreach) homelessness well served homelessness -Program supplies through the Supporting People g PP g services with Special Needs response to housing needs and Increase in people homelessness with special needs accessing housing 3 HOPE Services Hawaii,Inc. ATTACHMENT C HOPE Services Hawaii, Inc. Data Metrics& Service Outcomes HOPE Services Hawaii, Inc. provides housing-focused programs on Hawaii Island, in service to people at imminent risk of, experiencing, and overcoming homelessness. HOPE monitors two distinct data sets to assess community needs, ensure program effectiveness, and adjust program reach to make homelessness more rare, brief and nonrecurring. Together,these data help to establish a baseline of understanding our community needs, and help us to evaluate our program delivery. 1) Homeless Point In Time Count As a member of Bridging the Gap(BTG), Balance of the State Continuum of Care, HOPE Services leads and participates in an annual `snapshot'count of homelessness on a single night in January. The Homeless Point in Time Count(PIT) of Hawaii Island is publicly available on the BTG website'. The most recently available five years are as follows: Incidence 2022 20212 2020 2019 2018 Sheltered 283 227 276 243 200 Unsheltered 554 NA 521 447 669 Total 837 NA 797 690 869 2) Service Utilization HOPE Services provides an array of programs and services to our community's most vulnerable. Year to year data demonstrating service utilization assists program planning and development on a continuous basis. The following chart reflects overall agency impact within core homeless service programs', across 5 years: Utilization 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 Individuals Served 1,096 1,422 1,525 1,578 1,700 h1lps:r'iwww.btEliawaii.org/reports/housing inventory-counts-point-in-tiine/ In response to the COVID-19 pandemic,BTG was exempt from conducting the Homeless Point in Time Count in January 2021,thus,unsheltered homelessness was not included in the report. s Special funding made available to assist persons at imminent risk of and experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic, including the Emergency Rental Assistance and Rental and Mortgage Assistance Programs, were not recorded in the HMIS a Individuals are reported unduplicated within a one-year period ATTACHMENT D 2022 STATE OF HOUSELESSN ESS B.T.G. ON THE NEIGHBOR ISLANDS: Bridging The Gap THE DATA METRICS THAT MATTER Continuum of Care serving H•w•i.i,r4aui&Kaua-i STATE FISCAL YEAR 2022(JULY 1,2021 TO JUNE 30,2022) B.T.G. (neighbor island totals) '` € Maui Ka u a`i Total people served 31638 1,482 1,628 528 People who moved into permanent 1019 477 443 99 housing Exit rate to 49% 54% 45% 43% permanent housing Average length of stay in emergency shelter 155 D,7, 196 144 (in days) Successfully remained housed for 2+ years 87%�o $3% 87% THE IMPACT OF HOUSELESSN ESS NEIGHBOR ISLANDS DEMOGRAPHICS i i T ;K 5% 12% 45% 2% have lived in have lived in Hawaii are U.S. Veterans are kupuna Hawaii 20+years under l year 9 • • #4P Wis fl ff, 24% 42% 64% 423 of keiki are S of families are led families have minor are children ears and under b mother Y Y a single g children SOURCES: • • • THE CONTINUUM OF CARE • HOMELESS MANAGEMENT INFORMATION BTGHAWAILORG ATTACHMENT D HOUSELESSNESS IN HAWAII COUNTY THE METRICS THAT MATTER, YEAR BY YEAR* 'STATE FISCAL YEAR (JUL021 - JUNE 30, 2022) 2022 Z 2020 TOTAL PEOPLE SERVED 1,482 11515 1,452 PEOPLE INTO PERMANENT D 477 478 605 HOUSING EXIT RATE TO PERMANENT 54% 61 % 70 HOUSING AVERAGE LENGTH OF STAY IN EMERGENCY 91 98 89 SHELTER (DAYS) SUCCESSFULLY REMAINED HOUSED 90% 88% 77% FOR 2+ YEARS THE IMPACT OF HOUSELESSNESS HAWAII COUNTY AT A GLANCE r 60% 4% 5% 10 i HAVE LIVED IN HAVE LIVED IN ARE U.S. VETERANS ARE KUPUNA HAWAII UNDER 1 HAWAII 20+ YEARS YEAR 28% 40% 70% 192 ARE CHILDREN OF KEIKI ARE 5 OF FAMILIES ARE LED FAMILIES HAVE YEARS AND UNDER BY A SINGLE MOTHER MINOR CHILDREN Sources: Bridging the Gap:The FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: ��`'r� Continuum of Care for Hawai'i, PAUL NORMANN, CHAIR r n Maui and Kaua'i Counties,and COMMUNITY ALLIANCE PARTNERS r - Homeless Management Information System PAUL@ NEIGH BORHOODPLACE.ORG communityallioncepartners.org aArtr"F-0-4