Members of a brand new committee overseeing SF’s Division of Homelessness and Supportive Housing are optimistic that their lately shaped watchdog panel will reduce by means of purple tape and finally velocity up Metropolis Corridor’s response to the disaster unfolding on the streets of San Francisco.
The seven-member Homeless Oversight Fee, permitted by voters final November, was initially criticized by Mayor London Breed for introducing one more layer of paperwork to town’s cumbersome homelessness response.
However some members of the newly shaped oversight physique—which is scheduled to satisfy for the primary time in Might—informed The Normal that they hope to scale back the obstacles the homelessness division faces in shortly shifting individuals off the road.
“What we don’t want is one other grenade touchdown in everybody’s lap,” mentioned former president of the Small Enterprise Fee Sharky Laguana. “I do not need to tie everyone up in plenty of lengthy conferences, and I do not need to go on plenty of wild goose chases.”
The fee may have the ability to solicit audits, set up efficiency requirements and convene hearings to evaluate the effectiveness of packages run by the homelessness division. The panel consists of three members who’re appointed by the board of supervisors and 4 people who find themselves appointed by the mayor.
Laguana, who was appointed by the mayor and spoke to The Normal on behalf of himself and never the fee, mentioned that extra oversight doesn’t want to return on the expense of effectivity.
Laguana plans to push for a centralized information supply that may assist the general public monitor the division’s successes and shortcomings. He additionally mentioned that there’s a must combine the checks and balances which are already in place.
For his or her half, some nonprofits have complained that compliance checks will be onerous and complicated, particularly when working with a number of departments that every have their very own processes.
“Typically we’re asking the identical query twice,” Laguana mentioned. “It is coming from a superb place—eager to be a superb steward of public cash—nevertheless it’s […] really having the other impact.”
One other appointee, Christin Evans, a small enterprise proprietor and advocate for homeless individuals, additionally had considerations in regards to the metrics that the division makes use of to outline success.
Evans, who supported a 2018 enterprise tax that raised tons of of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in funding for homeless providers, mentioned she feels an obligation to make sure the cash is spent appropriately.
“To me, essentially the most urgent efficiency metric is how individuals are being housed,” Evans mentioned. “We actually must have a more practical movement of individuals shifting on from shelter beds.”
Among the many many urgent points for the fee to contemplate is that over 900 housing items meant for homeless individuals are sitting vacant whereas individuals sleep on town’s streets.
In an emailed assertion, fee appointee Whit Joaquin Guerrero mentioned eliminating bureaucratic hoops might assist handle the department-wide staffing scarcity contributing to those deficiencies.
Guerrero additionally expressed a necessity for quite a lot of housing fashions to suit the wants of all homeless residents.
Some housing suppliers contend that town is inserting individuals who want the next stage of care into supportive housing packages that aren’t geared up with the psychological well being sources wanted to reintegrate them into society.
“A ‘one-size matches all’ mannequin of housing […] doesn’t work for everybody,” Guerrero mentioned. “We have to handle the problems which are maintaining the system from working for the individuals it’s meant to serve.”
It stays to be seen if the fee will play a job in shaping coverage, or whether or not they’ll primarily function watchdogs of the division.
Analyzing the division’s upcoming five-year plan and wrapping their heads round its $635 million funds are among the many first duties that its members should stay up for.
“It’s like an enormous Rubik’s dice,” Laguana mentioned. “San Francisco wants a win. My eye is on how can we put a win on the board.”
David Sjostedt will be reached at [email protected]