Roll Call and Introductions

Staff Attendance: Jaime Jenett, H3; Jamie Schecter, H3; Mark Mora, Homebase; Michele Byrnes,

Homebase; Tania Morales, Homebase

Community Member Attendance:

In-person: Tina Connor, Community member; Dolores White, I4C; Josie Asencio, from SDA and I4C

Virtual: Ms. Evon Ufland, Agape's Restore & Renew Home; Barbara Aguilar, Antioch Unified School

District; Manish Jain, Bay Shelter Homes; Jill Ray, BOS District 2; Christine Wetzel, Caminar; Gina

Bills, CCCOE; Ishani Rasanayaga, City of Pittsburg; S Shephard, Community member; Tan Lowe,

Community member; Jacqueline Lopez-Padilla, Community Services Bureau; Jaclyn Tummings,

Conservation and Development; Peter Myers, Contra Costa County; Denise Clarke, Contra Costa

County Office of Education; Vicki Proctor, Extended Hands Ministry; Brianna Ramos, Fresh Lifelines

for Youth; Anya Kushwaha, H3; Brittany Ferguson, H3;Carina Rodriguez-Pena, H3; Caroline Miller,

H3; Cheryl Leonor, H3; Janel Fletcher, H3; Mary Juarez-Fitzgerald, H3; Shelby Ferguson, H3;

Stephanie Bodisco, H3; Yessenia Aguilar, H3; Deanne Pearn, Hope Solutions; Benjamin Hernandez,

Impact Justice, The Homecoming Project; Angela Corona, Lao Family Community Development;

Wilanda Hughes, LFCD; Olivia King, RCD; Rena Moore, Safe Return Project; Alicia Alferez, SHELTER,

Inc.; Andrea Foti, SHELTER, Inc.; Christi Rossi, SHELTER, Inc.; Juan Florez, SHELTER, Inc.; Carmella

Kowall, Winter Nights Family Shelter Inc.; Teri Lundvall, Winter Nights Family Shelter Inc.;

Anastasia Lockwood, YAB; Leon Saelee, YAB; Amanda Aschow, Zócalo Health.

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, Gabriel Lemus,

LeAnn Matthews, Yahel Moreno, Courtney Pal, Shawn Ray, and

Heather Worobey

Present

Danielle Jimenez, and Tony Ucciferri

Absent

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

(speakers may be limited to two minutes).

Barbara Aguilar, the foster and unsheltered youth liaison for Antioch 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 County. During the 2023-24 school

year, Antioch Unified School District identified 420 unsheltered homeless students, with the

majority living doubled up or in vehicles, and over 200 unaccompanied youth were counted

countywide. The lack of severe family shelters contributes to this issue in Contra Costa County.

Barbara highlighted the ongoing and urgent need for increased housing resources for

vulnerable students and families.

Hope Dixon, a community representative on the Council, expressed gratitude for the advocacy

of homeless liaisons and shared that Contra Costa College is facing similar experiences with

students. Hope also emphasized the need to stand up to the current issues on immigration,

homelessness, LGBTQIA+, etc., and be a collective community supporting one another.

Dolores White raised concerns about the Martinez refinery's impact on homeless individuals

and recommended the county to perform health checks. Mia Fairbanks, COH member,

responded that the Healthcare for the Homeless program has a mobile clinic presence with

street medicine every Friday at Martinez Marina and will check on the homeless population for

symptoms.

A community member proposed ideas for utilizing empty buildings and retraining homeless

individuals.

Josie Asensio, the lead pastor of the Antioch 7th Day Adventist Church, shared that the church

has created a task force on homelessness and has started a social justice project of the

Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County. The church is interested in learning more about

Functional Zero and identify what groups work on it to bring it back at the religious

organization level.

25-420

COH Minutes 1.9.25

Attachments:

COH Staff Report 2.6.25

A: APPROVE minutes from the January 9, 2025 Council meeting B. APPROVE staff

report for the February 6, 2025 Council meeting

Motion:

Leslie Gleason

Second:

Green

Committee Report Outs: Youth Advisory Board Update

Leon Saalee presented the YAB subcommittees, which are communications, outreach and retention,

and data and research. Per the recent pause on many federal grants, the HUD Youth Homelessness

Demonstration Program was removed from the government’s website, but the team is hopeful that

the competition will resume as this program was authorized by Congress. Despite this setback, YAB is

moving forward with its plans, including solidifying its 2025 core leadership roles and filling

subcommittees with members. The Board also discussed its participation in various activities such as

the housing needs assessment, redesign steering committee, RFP panel, and community building

events. In terms of next steps, YAB is planning to submit the bylaws to the Council on Homelessness

and participate in the Youth Empowerment Summit in Sacramento in March.

Old Business: Update: Coordinated Entry Housing Needs Assessment Project

Mary Juarez-Fitzgerald provided an overview of the Coordinated Entry system, which is a centralized

system that serves as the front door for connecting individuals experiencing homelessness or a

housing crisis to available housing resources and services within the Contra Costa County. Mary

explained that the system is designed to quickly and equitably identify, assess, and prioritize

individuals and families who are most vulnerable, ensuring they get connected to support as quickly as

possible. Mary also discussed the project to replace the current assessment tool, the VI-SPDAT, with a

more effective and equitable tool. The project, which began in August 2024, is expected to be ongoing

through February 2026, and it involves document review, data analysis, stakeholder engagement. The

new tool will incorporate predictive analytics and data to better assess housing needs and adapt to

the community's specific needs.

Old Business: Update: 2025 Point-In-Time Count

Yessenia thanked everyone for their participation, work, and dedication for the PIT Count. The team

expressed satisfaction with the improvements made to the PIT Count process, particularly the use of

pop-ups on phones alerting people when they were out of their areas and the implementation of

feedback from the previous year. Participants shared their positive experiences, including the

opportunity to interact with people experiencing homelessness and the sense of accomplishment

from contributing to the data collection. Some ideas for future counts are to provide packages or

money to homeless individuals as they wake up. The data analysis is ongoing, and results are expected

by early spring. H3 thanked the team for their hard work and expressed hope for continued

improvement in the process.

25-422

Q4-2024 Report

Attachments:

Jaime Jenett discussed the Quarter 4 report, which was submitted to the Family and

Human Services Committee of the Board of Supervisors. The report highlighted the

importance of ongoing funding at the state level and critical safety net services, especially

in the current climate. The recommendation is described as “In alignment with the

California State Association of Counties, support ongoing funding for the Homeless

Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) Program and other critical safety net services

that support people experiencing homelessness in Contra Costa County.” Jaime reminded

COH members that they can share their ideas as to what other recommendations the

Council should make to the Board of Supervisors.

Old Business: Funding Updates

The Housing and Homeless Services RFP process is now on the stage of finalizing funding

recommendations. The next steps are to send out a communication to all applicants and present the

recommendations to the Family and Human Services Committee on March 10th. Jamie also discussed

the challenges that many communities are facing due to the Federal Office of Management and

Budget's temporary pause on all activities related to the obligation or disbursement of all Federal

financial assistance. Despite this, the Continuum of Care (COC) was awarded funding for all renewal

projects, including one new project, totaling over $22 million dollars. However, the Youth Homeless

Demonstration Project (YHTP) funding is no longer available on grants.gov, leading to uncertainty

about future funding opportunities. Christy Saxton shared that H3 is having conversations with Contra

Costa Department of Conservation and Development and the Housing Authority of County of Contra

Costa about how this is impacting the agencies and how to prepare. H3 also shared updates on the

Next Step Interim Housing Project, which aims to provide more stability to participants who are

unsheltered and waiting for permanent housing. The project is currently at full capacity and is

expected to increase to 38 households by the end of the month. The program is seen as a pilot with

potential for replication across the county. Participants receive support services through various

channels, including on-site staff. The discussion also touches on the use of shared living arrangements

as a strategy to address homelessness in the expensive local housing market. Anyone interested in

receiving email notifications and updates for Funding Opportunities can sign up for the newsletter

here <https://visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin?

v=001zpQMaVU8vAygGSKiQQAmHz_QvSMlD0ShGg_UfEGz8Fw2oyhhOhpPQh4Scmvsv9L6-3wLwduao

MFPbiiNUnbiEe0LOSN5tVfBx16Z8EGIJAI%3D>.

New Business: APPROVE 2025 Council on Homelessness Chair and Vice Chair(ACTION

ITEM)

Jaime Jenett led the discussion on the selection of the chair and vice chair selection for 2025. Jaime

also outlined the responsibilities of the chair and vice chair, including providing oversight, facilitating

meetings, and reviewing and approving funding applications. Nicole Green was nominated as the Chair

and Juno Hedrick as the Vice Chair.

To approve Nicole Green for Chair and Juno Hedrick for Vice Chair for Council on

Homelessness for 2025

Motion:

Criswell

Second:

Matthews

Chamberlain, Clapp, Criswell, Dixon, Earl, E Fairbanks, Foudy,

Leslie Gleason, Lemus, Matthews, Moreno, Pal, Ray, and Worobey

Aye:

Chamberlain, Clapp, Criswell, Dixon, Earl, E Fairbanks,

Foudy, Leslie Gleason, Lemus, Matthews, Moreno, Pal, Ray,

and Worobey

Jimenez, and Ucciferri

Green, and Hedrick

Absent:

Abstain:

Green, and Hedrick

10.

25-421

2025 CoH Committees Overview

Attachments:

Jaime Jenett discussed the various committees within the council, which are the Plan for

Accelerating Transformative Housing (PATH) committee, the Oversight committee, HMIS

Policy committee, Funding committee, Equity committee, Governance committee, and Ad

Hoc committees. Council members were encouraged to commit to at least one

committee, with the understanding that once committed, they must be able to attend

in-person meetings when required. The name of each committee as well as the purpose,

timing of meetings, and memberships were displayed. A spreadsheet with Council

member names and committee names were presented. All Council members were asked

to select the

committees they were interested in participating. Ad hoc committee recruitment will be

done at a later date. The selections are as follows:

1. Funding committee: Courtney Pal; Dani Jimenez; Hope Dixon; Juno Hedrick; Nicole

Green; Sherina Criswell; Verneda Clapp; Wayne Earl; Yahel Moreno.

2. Equity committee: Juno Hedrick; LeAnn Matthews; Leslie Gleason; Nicole Green;

Sherina Criswell; Yahel Moreno.

3. Governance committee: Carolyn Foudy; Hope Dixon; Juno Hedrick; Sherina

Criswell; Tony Ucciferri.

4. HMIS Policy committee: Dani Jimenez; Gabriel Lemus; Heather Worobey; Juno

Hedrick; Tony Ucciferri.

5. Oversight committee: Alejandra Chamberlain; Courtney Pal; Gabriel Lemus; Hope

Dixon; Juno Hedrick; Leslie Gleason; Mia Fairbanks; Verneda Clapp; Wayne Earl;

Yahel Moreno.

6. PATH committee: Juno Hedrick; LeAnn Matthews; Shawn Ray; Tony Ucciferri;

Wayne Earl.

To approve the 2025 committee and work group for Council on Homelessness

Motion:

Second:

Matthews

Criswell

11.

New Business: Update: CoC Monitoring

Michele Byrnes described the CoC monitoring process that Homebase will be conducting this year,

focusing on HUD requirements and best practices. The areas of focus and approach for 2025 are

systemic findings from previous monitoring cycles, equity, and project corrective actions. The timeline

for this process was outlined, with outreach to providers starting in February, site visits beginning in

the spring, and findings presentations to Oversight and COH in the summer.

Announcements

- The Workforce Development Board has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the Workforce

Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) for youth program services. More information can be

found at this site <https://ehsd.org/bids/request-for-proposals-rfp-1218

-workforce-innovation-and-opportunity-act-wioa-title-i-youth-program-services/>.

- The Contra Costa County Probation Department’s Office of Reentry & Justice (ORJ) has issued a

few RFPs under legislation AB 109 to award projects for housing and employment. The award

opportunities may be found at the contracting site

<https://contracostaprobation.ca.gov/about/contract_opportunities.php>. Additionally, Nicole

Green shared that the reentry county team will attend the AB 109 summit and there are

conversations about having quarterly meetings. Once the dates are confirmed, they will be shared

with the team of care and service providers that work with the reentry population.

- Per HUD transition changes pertaining to CoC funded projects for housing quality standards to

national standards for the physical inspection of real estate - HQS to NSPIRE, Homebase is

preparing materials and resources that will highlight the differences to support the communities

in this transition. Anyone with suggestions about work products and materials to cover may reach

out to Mark Mora at mark@homebaseccc.org <mailto:mark@homebaseccc.org>.

- Leon Saelee and Juno Hedrick, YAB Board members, are searching for a community partner to help

produce and develop a resume workshop to present for the rest of the YAB members to

incorporate best practices and iinclude some newer tools such as AI. Anyone interested in this

type of work can email leonsaelee2003@gmail.com <mailto:leonsaelee2003@gmail.com> or may

contact H3.

The next meeting is currently scheduled for March 6, 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