The Placer County Grand Jury’s final report was released this month, and its findings criticized the lack of communication and transparency around a county homeless program.
The
report focused on the Placer County Whole Person Care pilot program, which allowed
two county non-profit contractors to purchase single-family homes as permanent
supportive housing.
The
report said Placer County’s transparency regarding the program was “deficient”
and that the program “lacked oversight.”
The
Grand Jury report looked at the county request for proposals for the
non-profits, The Gathering Inn and Advocates for Mentally Ill Housing, Inc.,
and found that the homes purchased would accommodate at least six people that
qualify. It also stated contractors would make efforts to encourage and
maintain positive community relationships with surrounding neighbors,
associations, law enforcement and other community partnerships.
Each
non-profit was awarded $2.8 million contracts, and each purchased three
single-family homes in Lincoln, Roseville, Rocklin and Auburn from December
2019 through January 2021. Between the six homes, 17 Placer County individuals
who qualify now have stable housing as a part of the pilot.
The
Grand Jury report stated that through its investigation it learned Placer
County Health and Human Services, The Gathering Inn and Advocates for Mentally
Ill Housing, Inc. did not communicate with neighbors, neighborhood or community
associations or the city councils of Auburn, Lincoln, Roseville or Rocklin
before the contractors purchased the homes.
Through
follow-up interviews with the contractors, the Grand Jury discovered the
contractors did not interact with the neighborhoods before purchase to avoid
interfering with the escrow process.
The
report questioned Placer County’s decision to not inform the neighborhoods and
city councils before the purchase of the homes and called the action “a lack of
transparency.”
Due
to the pandemic restrictions, The Gathering Inn staff stated it did not
interact with neighborhoods even after purchasing the houses. Cancelled
meetings due to the pandemic also paused Advocates for Mentally Ill Housing,
Inc.’s neighborhood communication.
“There
were alternative methods, such as direct mail or social media, available to
(the contractors) to communicate with the neighborhood residents which might
have reduced neighborhood concerns,” the report stated.
The
Grand Jury also called on Placer County to reorganize its homeless services. It
said the Placer County Health and Human Services department has six divisions
and is the largest department in the county. The pilot is overseen by the
Public Health division, while the mentally ill homeless are overseen by the
Adult Service of Care division.
“The
Grand Jury questions the efficiency of having no single divisions overseeing
all programs which makes communications fragmented if not impossible involving
the homeless and the funds associated with those programs,” the report stated.
Overall,
the Grand Jury stated the lack of communication regarding the pilot program
resulted in misinformation being spread.
“Because
of the lack of communication, the public turned to social media and rumors for
the information,” the report stated. “This resulted in a perception that the
number of calls law enforcement received concerning permanent supportive
housing was very high.”
The
report reveals that complaints against the housing was lower than what was
posted on social media.
The
Grand Jury admitted a solution to homeless housing that would please everyone
isn’t likely, but improved communication would make the county pilot more
successful.
The
Grand Jury concluded the report with four recommendations for Placer County
Health and Human Services, including: complying with its plan for transparency
and communication, instituting an annual review of compliance of transparency
and communication, take steps to add a division or reorganize to have a single
division manage all homeless programs in the county and make sure contractors
have initiated open communications with neighborhoods.
The
Grand Jury allows a response period from entities it looks into and expects a
response from Placer County no later than Oct. 1.
Asked
for a reaction of the findings in the report, Health and Human Services Public
Information Officer Katie Combs Prichard said they “look forward to developing
and providing an in-depth response to the report.”
The
Placer County pilot program was one of several government operations
investigated in the latest Placer Grand Jury report. Other topics included
November 2020 election preparedness, special district reporting compliance,
management of the Lincoln Regional Airport and public library systems.
The
full Placer County Grand Jury 2020-2021 Final Report can be viewed online at http://www.placer.courts.ca.gov/general-grandjury-reports.shtml.
Auburn
Journal
Traci Newell
June 25, 2021
No comments:
Post a Comment