The Homeless Action Partnership of Santa Cruz County was recently awarded $3,449,500 in federal grants to address local homelessness, a 31 percent increase over the prior year.
The annual grants support numerous programs including permanent supportive housing for chronically homeless individuals, family housing, behavioral health services, rapid re-housing and improvements to increase the efficiency of local services to address homelessness. Issued by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the grants are the Homeless Action Partnership’s share of more than $2 billion in grants announced nationwide.
“This represents an unprecedented level of investment by our federal partners in addressing homelessness in Santa Cruz County,” Homeless Services Coordinator Rayne Perez said. “With recent state investments, these funds will make a difference in the lives of local homeless families and individuals.”
The grants will fund a dozen programs and services benefiting a variety of populations. Included is additional funding for Smart Path to Housing and Health, the county’s coordinated entry system, which streamlines access to housing assistance and services for people experiencing homelessness.
Watsonville-based Families in Transition was awarded $473,900 for First Step-Housing for Families With Children. The rapid-rehousing program provides 12 homeless families with security deposits and phased rental subsidies for up to 12 months to help them to secure their own rental housing, as well as an array of supportive services.
At $924,178, the largest award was to the Housing Authority of Santa Cruz County for continuing its Shelter Plus Care Program, representing a 24 percent increase over the prior year. The program provides 40 units of permanent supportive housing, including “wraparound” services from the Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency to vulnerable, chronically homeless individuals with disabilities.
The county’s Homeless Persons Health Project (HPHP) received $807,019 to continue its MATCH Program, a collaboration between HPHP and Front Street Housing, Inc. to provide 41 units of permanent supportive housing.
