Help on the way

Butte County nonprofits will have a chance to vie for $4.9 million in state funding meant to bolster efforts to address homelessness. That’s because the city of Oroville—followed shortly thereafter by Gridley—declared a shelter crisis earlier this month, opening up access to funding through California’s Homeless Emergency Aid Program (HEAP).

On Tuesday (Sept. 25), the Butte County Board of Supervisors followed suit, unanimously voting to declare a shelter crisis—after a motion made by Supervisor Larry Wahl and seconded by Supervisor Maureen Kirk, both of whom represent Chico.

“If you don’t declare, then the county and providers in unincorporated areas would not have access to funding,” county Chief Administrative Officer Shari McCracken told the board prior to the vote.

It seemed like a no-brainer.

“Is there a downside?” Kirk asked McCracken. Her answer was “no.”

Half a dozen members of the public spoke on the matter, all of them in favor of declaring a crisis.

“There are thousands of people in our county in need of services,” said former Chico City Councilwoman Tami Ritter, who will take the retiring Kirk’s seat next year. “Get the people who are open to services into those services. It’s a first step in the right direction. If we can get the whole county behind this, we can truly address this homeless issue.”

Charles Withuhn, who’s long championed a tiny house complex in Chico (dubbed Simplicity Village) in conjunction with the Chico Housing Action Team, asked the board to act compassionately to stop the problem from getting worse. “What do you think happens when you leave so many people so hopeless for so long? When you’re hopeless, a lot that is civilized gets left behind.”

For Lisa Currier, a local mental health advocate who operates a crisis prevention service, the issue is bigger than most people realize, because “homeless doesn’t have to look like someone shooting up in the streets.”

Benson, who serves on the Greater Chico Homeless Task Force, came at the board with a fury, accusing its members of not taking a seat at the table, preferring to spend money on other things like a jail expansion.

“But where are the beds on this side of the bars?” he asked. “Where’s our detox center? Where’s our Laura’s Law? Where’s our community court?”

The board answered with a unanimous vote.

HEAP funding is determined by each area’s Point-in-Time homeless census numbers and is being disbursed from the state through local continuums of care. In addition to making the case for the county declaring a crisis, and regardless of whether it chose to do so, McCracken explained to the board Tuesday that the county had offered to be the administrating agency for HEAP funds. (The board will take up that issue separately at a future meeting.)

What that means is the county would be the fiscal agent in charge of disbursing that $4.9 million and ensuring recipients comply with HEAP rules, explained Jennifer Griggs, coordinator for the Butte Countywide Continuum of Care (CoC).

The CoC, however, would still be in charge of taking applications and awarding funding, Griggs told the CN&R. With deadlines looming, decisions will be made fairly quickly, she added. To be eligible for HEAP funding, proposed projects must either be service-based or offer emergency housing. The latter requires an address, a physical location where the project would take place; the former does not. Here’s a basic timeline:

Now: Agencies with address-based projects in Oroville, Gridley and unincorporated Butte County can submit applications. Because the county declared a crisis, Griggs said, service-based projects that are not tied to an address can apply regardless of jurisdiction. For example, a mobile medical unit based in Chico but meant to serve people throughout the county could be eligible for funding.

Oct. 2: Chico City Council discusses shelter crisis declaration. If it declares, projects based on an address in Chico would be eligible. For example, physical entities such as the Torres Community Shelter and Jesus Center could expand services. Or a project like Simplicity Village could be proposed. Griggs stressed that declaring a crisis would not give Simplicity Village or any other proposed building project the green light; the city would still have a say.

Oct. 3-4: The CoC will hold workshops—in Chico on Oct. 3 and Oroville Oct. 4—for agencies to get information and technical assistance in what’s needed to apply for HEAP funding. (A second round of workshops will be held Oct. 25 in Oroville and Oct. 29 in Chico.)

Oct. 9: Paradise Town Council considers declaration.

Oct. 11: CoC deadline for cover sheet applications (agencies in jurisdictions with pending crisis declarations—potentially Chico—can still apply, but may not be deemed eligible).

Oct. 16: Chico’s second chance at a shelter crisis declaration, should it not decide on Oct. 2.

Oct. 18: Applicants alerted to eligibility status.

Oct. 31: Deadline for full applications to the CoC.

Last week of November: Award announcements.

February 2019: Contracts begin.