Meeting Minutes - Final

CONTRA COSTA COUNTY Contra Costa

Council on Homelessness

1:00 PM

Thursday, May 1, 2025

Location: In person: 1025 Escobar St.,

Martinez Virtual:

https://homebaseccc.zoom.us/meeting/register/t

Zclf-uspzovGdR7op72t5-X4nsGdqdpvL-X#/reg

istration

COH Agenda 5.1.25

COH Slides 5.1.25 updated 4.29.25

Attachments:

Agenda Items: Items may be taken out of order based on the business of the day and preference of the

Committee

Roll Call and Introductions

Staff Attendance: Jaime Jenett, H3; Jamie Schecter, H3; Mark Mora, Homebase; Tania Morales,

Homebase

Community Member Attendance:

• In-person: Jaclyn Tummings, DCD; Melanie Erickson, DCD; Caoline Miller, H3; Darius Aikens,

Pittsburg Police department; Dillon Baler, Upward health; Jasmine Lologo, Upward Health;

Nance Rowemanns, Upward Health; Leon Salee, YAB

• Remote: Athena, Bay Area Community Services; Angela Mullen, Brentwood Unified School

District; Christine Wetzel, Caminar; Ishani Rasanayagam, City of Pittsburg; Catherine

Casimere, City of Richmond; Gerry, Community member; Jessika Erin, Community member;

Peter Myers, Contra Costa County District 3; Kirsten Hougen, CCC EHSD CSB; Janna Evans,

CCCOE; Denise Clarke, Contra Costa County Office of Education; Gina O., Contra Costa Crisis

Center; Lisa Malul, Contra Costa Crisis Center; Elizabeth Winstead, DOR; Cheryl Leonor, H3;

Christy Saxton, H3; Elissa Kim, H3; Jorge Flores, H3; Mary Juarez-Fitzgerald, H3; Yessenia

Aguilar, H3; Jacqueline Franco, H3; Deanne Pearn, Hope Solutions; Emily Bero, Hope

Solutions; Khayla DiGiorgio, Hope Solutions; Rena Moore, Safe Return Project; Hang Mosier,

SAHA Homes; Christi Rossi, SHELTER Inc.; Rebecca Gomez-Pellecer, SHELTER Inc.; Barb Hunt,

St. Vincent de Paul of CCC; Jai De Lotto, VA CES; Anastasia Lockwood, YAB

This was read into the record.

Alejandra Chamberlain, Verneda Clapp, Sherina Criswell, Hope

Dixon, Wayne Earl, Maria E Fairbanks, Carolyn Foudy, Susan

Leslie Gleason, Nicole Green, Juno Hedrick, Danielle Jimenez,

Gabriel Lemus, LeAnn Matthews, Yahel Moreno, Courtney Pal,

Shawn Ray, and Tony Ucciferri

Present

Heather Worobey

Absent

Public comment on any item under the jurisdiction of the Committee and not on this agenda

(speakers may be limited to two minutes).

Leslie Gleason, COH member, announced that Trinity Center has launched a search for a new

executive director. Anyone who is interested in applying should visit Trinity Center’s website.

Angela Mullen, the foster and homeless youth liaison for Brentwood Unified School District and also a

member of the McKinney-Vento Education Council, discussed the significant challenges faced by

homeless families and youth in East Contra Costa County. During the 2023-24 school year, 1,300

students were identified as homeless students, with the majority living in doubled up situations or in

vehicles. Due to the lack of family shelters, many families are told to go out of the County to find

resources. Housing instability leads to chronic absenteeism, emotional distress, and causes a

decline in their academic performance. Angela emphasized the urgent need of expanding shelter

options and increase housing resources for vulnerable students and families in East Contra Costa

County.

Mary Juarez-Fitzgerald, H3, shared the news that Valerie Slovin, a H3 staff member, has officially

retired and thanked her for her dedication and continuous work of over 10 years helping people

experiencing homelessness in Contra Costa County. Other members joined Mary to thank Valerie for

her devotion.

COH Minutes 4.3.25 draft

COH Staff Report 5.1.25

Attachments:

A. APPROVE minutes from the April 3, 2025 Council meeting and B. APPROVE

staff report for the May 1, 2025 Council meeting

Motion:

Earl

Second:

Ucciferri

Committee Report Out: a. Youth Advisory Board (YAB) Update

The Youth Advisory Board (YAB) provided a report on their activities in April and plans for May. In

terms of next steps, they plan to continue their partnership with Rainbow, meet with the Contra Costa

Health, Community, Education, and Information team to improve their social media presence,

participate in the Housing Needs Assessment Committee, and improve collaboration with the

Oversight Committee. They await the HUD’s Youth Homeless Demonstration HDP FY 2024 NOFO

award results. The members expressed their excitement and pride in the work they are doing,

emphasizing the importance of advocacy and public speaking.

Committee Report Out: Nominating Committee (5 min)

Jaime Jenett discussed the need to seek a new representative for the City Government

Representative seat, as the previous representative, Jazmin Ridley, stepped down and resigned from

the seat. The committee now is seeking volunteers for a Nominating Panel to review applications and

recommend a new candidate for the open seat. The following COH members agreed to join: Leanne

Matthews, Juno Hedrick, Dani Jimenez, and Hope Dixon.

Old Business: Funding Updates

The Board of Supervisors approved the recommendations for the Housing and Homeless Services per

the RFP on April 15th, 2025, with nearly $6.6 million in federal, state and local funds. All contracts will

become effective July 1st, 2025 or later. For the 2024 Continuum of Care Notice of Funding

Opportunity federal funding update, CoC grantees have begun receiving grant agreements. Due to

significant changes on the agreement language to enforce compliance with executive orders, such as

prohibition to promote gender ideology and denying of services per immigration status, The National

Alliance to End Homelesness recommends seeking legal counsel to review the grant documents. Per

the language changes about immigration status for CoC assisted households, some agencies are

questioning whether they need to go back and request proof of immigration status to people

receiving services or whether that applies to new people who will receive services, as many agencies

that provide services do not request proof. Jamie answered that nonprofits have had a different

standard under local and state government in terms of verifying immigration details and that they

utilize HMIS data to make sure eligibility is in place but clarified that the HMIS does not track

citizenship status. H3 recommends continuing working with legal counsel and being informed about

the process. There are also concerns about HUD’s Housing First language changes, with H3

acknowledging the importance of keep enforcing this program model at the state and local level.

Additionally, H3 also highlighted the new funding from Assembly Bill (AB) 109, a public safety

realignment funding that all counties get from the state for housing programs. For the Homeless

Housing Assistance and Prevention Program (HHAP) Round 6 update, there will be three stakeholder

engagement meetings to obtain input on the community's needs and help create a budget for the

HHAP 6 application to the State-the application is due at the end of August. Lastly, the United States

Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH), the entity that coordinates across the entire Federal

government on homelessness, published the Federal Strategic plan and has reduced to a minimum

presence and function required by law based on an executive order on March 14, 2025. Anyone

interested in receiving email notifications from Contra Costa County’s CoC Funding Opportunities page

can sign up for the newsletter here.

Old Business: (ACTION ITEM) Discuss And Approve 2025 Quarter 1 Council On

Homelessness Recommendations For Report To County Board Of Supervisors

Jaime Jenett discussed the 2025 quarter o1recommendations for reports to the County Board of

Supervisors. The Council would like to promote more of the Homelessness 101, a community forum

on homelessness where members of the public can come and learn real basic information about

homelessness. The next one will be scheduled in Pittsburgh. Other recommendations to send to the

Board of Supervisors are to include youth’s work, address the need for a cheat sheet of what the

different committees are doing, and the current challenges of funding due to federal cuts and the

need to raise awareness of these challenges.

To approve the 2025 Quarter 1 Council on Homelessness Recommendations for

the report to the County Board of Supervisors.

Motion:

Jimenez

Second:

E Fairbanks

Old Business: Conference Reports

Jamie Schecter shared the recent presentation that H3 did at the Corporation for Supportive Housing

Annual Conference in Chicago, in collaboration with Alameda County, where they shared the training

sessions and resources that Contra Costa County uses to support providers in their community. H3, in

partnership with Hope Solutions, also had a strong representation at the Housing California

conference, where they presented on their El Portal Place project and discussed the use of AB 109

funding. The team expressed excitement about their innovative projects and the recognition they

have received from attendees for their work.

New Business: Update: System Performance Measures (10 min)

Kimberly Thai went over the HUD System Performance Measures (SPM), which were established in

2015. The SPM is an annual report used at the federal level to determine funding for the CoC at a local

level, identify trends, understand impacts for program or policy changes, and guide decision-making.

The SPM is guided by seven key measures with Measure 6 focusing on prevention outcomes and is

only applicable to high-performing communities. The meeting also covered how to use the findings to

understand changes over time, set goals for the CoC, and the importance of considering changes in

funding sources and priorities. The conversation ended with a discussion on the data presented,

including the number of returns to homelessness, the number of homeless persons, employment and

income growth, and exit destination data.

10.

New Business: Sector Report Outs from Council Members

H3 reminded COH members to use this space to share any updates. A question was raised to find out

if they were part of any other council, board, or advisory group that speaks to the work around

homelessness. A council member answered [1:26:09] that she belongs to the Alameda County CoC

Outreach Access and Coordination Committee so it could be an opportunity to share what they are

doing and how it relates to this work. Alejandra Chamberlain, COH member, mentioned that there is a

group that will be formed soon to discuss AB 2083, which involves probation, child welfare, behavioral

health as well as The County Office of Education and Regional Center. Mia Fairbanks is also on the

Healthcare for the Homeless Board and they will be undergoing a site visit and evaluation by their

funder. Mia will have some flyers with more information about who can access those services at the

next meeting. Hope Dixon shared that she could bring in information about the Reimagine Richmond

project where they work on reimagining community safety with police oversight, and the Rock project,

a mental health crisis line for low level emergency calls. Hope Dixon also mentioned that the City of

Richmond is recruiting for a community intervention specialist and details about the job opportunity

may be found at the City of Richmond’s website. For AB 109, Nicole Green shared that there will be an

online summit on June 4th and it will be open to all county programs (H3, CoC, behavioral health, etc.).

COH members will be asked to confirm if they have a report out they would like to share when the

email about quorum goes out.

11.

New Business: Learning Corner: Presentation on Opioid Response and Services

Elissa Kim, the Opioid Response Coordinator, presented data on drug overdose deaths and

emergency department visits, with data showing that drug overdose emerged as the leading cause of

death among residents aged 25-54, highlighting the impact on different regions and communities. She

emphasized the need for a comprehensive response to address the issue, which affects people of all

backgrounds and socioeconomic statuses. News articles about recent incidents in neighboring

counties were shared, emphasizing the importance of prevention within their own community. The

Access Line provides outpatient services, medication-assisted treatment, detox facilities, and recovery

support services. She highlighted the importance of treatment, particularly for those struggling with

substance use disorders, and mentioned the availability of bilingual services. Elissa also introduced the

Opioid Response Team, which engages with vulnerable populations to provide support and connect

them with treatment and recovery services. She emphasized the need to break the stigma

surrounding harm reduction and substance use, and mentioned the availability for the public to obtain

naloxone and fentanyl test strips in vending machines. The Syringe Service Program provides sterile

supplies, prevention supplies as well as education and testing for STIs and HIV. Elissa encouraged

collaboration with other organizations to support the community and the need to improve outreach.

Anyone needing support or information may email the team directly at

AODOPIOIDResponse@cchealth.org or call at 925−335−3330.

12.

Announcements

None

The next meeting is currently scheduled for Thursday, June 5, 2025

Adjourn

The Committee will provide reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities planning to attend

the Committee meetings. Contact the staff person listed below at least 72 hours before the meeting. Any

disclosable public records related to an open session item on a regular meeting agenda and distributed by

the County to a majority of members of the Committee less than 96 hours prior to that meeting are

available for public inspection at 2400 Bisso Lane (Suite D2), Concord, during normal business hours.

Staff reports related to items on the agenda are also accessible online at www.contracosta.ca.gov. If the

Zoom connection malfunctions for any reason, the meeting may be paused while a fix is attempted. If

the connection is not reestablished, the committee will continue the meeting in person without remote

access. Public comment may be submitted via electronic mail on agenda items at least one full work day

prior to the published meeting time.

For Additional Information Contact: contracostacoc@cchealth.org or call 925-608-6700