Sebastopol and the Inn - Dec 15th Council Meeting

 The Sebastopol City Council is having its regular and Special meeting next Tuesday December 15, at 6 p.m. for regular city business and special discussion of the purchase of the Sebastopol Inn by the County for homeless/elderly/covid-related housing. The purchase itself appears to be a done deal; what remains to be determined are plans for operations and administration, and selection of residents. This proposal has generated much controversy, including those who are strongly in favor of any effort to reduce homelessness; and others who are concerned about the loss of hotel tax revenues, the impact on local businesses and the city generally, questions about ongoing management of the site, and the degree to which the needs of Sebastopol and West County homeless will be addressed.

It appears that eligibility for housing at the Inn will be based upon assessments of elder age, general health problems, and covid vulnerabilities. Early allotments may be given to those who are already being housed elsewhere (Santa Rosa) to transition them to a more stable location in the Sebastopol Inn. Federal/State/County requirements  indicate that the most vulnerable get preference, no matter where they currently live, and local persons may obtain placement to the extent they may place at the top of each vulnerability ranking. *Sebastopol homeless persons with the stated vulnerabilities can begin the placement process by screening through West County Community Health, at 652 Petaluma Avenue near Palm Avenue, opposite the former Palm Drive Hospital, **to register in the "Coordinated  Entry Program."* That will allow them to be assessed for their vulnerabilities and provide information that can be used to evaluate them along with people from other areas and perhaps gain ranking because they have conditions that make them more or at least equally vulnerable and thus gain housing at the Inn.

I encourage our members to observe/participate in the Zoom City Council meeting. I would suggest that our tone should be to seek information and not to inflame, around this sensitive subject in which many important questions have been raised. Defiant positions may only cause positions to harden among decision-makers. Certainly our members are free to express their views further in writing to members of the city council, Supervisor Lynda Hopkins, and Barbie Robinson, director of the county Health Services Department and Community Development Commission. Contact information is easily available online.

Agenda and Zoom access information for the December 15 meeting is provided here:

https://www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us/Meeting-Event/City-Council/2020/City-Council-Meeting-December-15,-2020<https://www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us/Meeting-Event/City-Council/2020/City-Council-Meeting-December-15,-2020>

Other highlighted Zoom access information is here:

https://www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us/SebastopolSite/media/Documents/city_clerk/December-15-2020-FINAL-City-Council-Meeting-Agenda-for-Packet.pdf?ext=.pdf<https://www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us/SebastopolSite/media/Documents/city_clerk/December-15-2020-FINAL-City-Council-Meeting-Agenda-for-Packet.pdf?ext=.pdf>

*The following rather long (46 pages) but easily-read document summarizes plans and positions.* Note specifically the summary prepared by the City at pages 42-46. Also note the graphics provided by the activist organization SonomaCountyHomeless.com at pages 26-27 questioning the expenditure for the Sebastopol Inn, and suggesting other alternatives that may address a greater number of homeless persons. Also note the concerns of the owners of The Barlow, the commercial development across the street from the Sebastopol Inn, at pages 29-31. Other documents within this 46-page packet are more supportive of the project.

https://www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us/getattachment/Meeting-Event/City-Council/2020/City-Council-Meeting-December-15,-2020/Agenda-Item-Number-8-Sebatopol-Inn-Presentation-and-Discussion.pdf.aspx<https://www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us/getattachment/Meeting-Event/City-Council/2020/City-Council-Meeting-December-15,-2020/Agenda-Item-Number-8-Sebatopol-Inn-Presentation-and-Discussion.pdf.aspx>

This article in the Sonoma West News and Times explains in its later paragraphs that eligibility and ranking process, for those who are already being housed elsewhere, to transition them to a more stable location in the Sebastopol Inn.

http://www.sonomawest.com/sonoma_west_times_and_news/news/plans-for-sebastopol-inn-being-discussed-at-dec-15-council-meeting/article_6e402776-39ab-11eb-9fcc-f3fd3aefb663.html<http://www.sonomawest.com/sonoma_west_times_and_news/news/plans-for-sebastopol-inn-being-discussed-at-dec-15-council-meeting/article_6e402776-39ab-11eb-9fcc-f3fd3aefb663.html>

*Here is the County's information page about Project Homekey* which is proposed to establish housing at the Hotel Azura in Santa Rosa and the Sebastopol Inn.

https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/CDC/Homeless-Services/Project-Homekey/<https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/CDC/Homeless-Services/Project-Homekey/>

*Thank you for your continuing interest and attention to issues of homelessness in Sebastopol. Generally, the situation here remains stable.* Beyond the Sebastopol Inn, "Tiny Homes," or other housing alternatives, remain projects for future examination and work. "Safe Parking" and toileting/sanitation have been accomplishments.

Sebastopol Christian Church, Sebastopol Methodist Church, Sebastopol Community Church, St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, and Enmanji Buddhist Temple continue to provide "Saturday Tables" rotating each week of the month between them with hot lunches to go at noon. The Portico Italian market and pasta shop at 110 North Main Street is generously partnering with Sebastopol Methodist for its Saturday Table spaghetti lunch.

Laundry vouchers remain available through Sunrise Rotary and Sebastopol Methodist Mission Team as administered by Malcolm Andrews in conjunction with Jim Glomb of Rotary. In most cases Sonoma County Transit buses are fare-free, certainly in local shuttles. Medical assistance is available through West County Community Health at 652 Petaluma Avenue near Palm Avenue, opposite the former Palm Drive Hospital. Sebastopol Christian Church Barnabas Program continues to provide hot breakfasts, showers, and bag lunches on Mondays and Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., serving up to 30 persons a day, and bag lunches  on request and subject to availability throughout the week, with assistance from Community Church.  The Food Pantry on the grounds of St. Stephen's provides bagged dry food, milk, canned soups, sauces, beans, hot dogs, milk, eggs, M,W,F, Sa from 10 a.m. to noon, has an abundance of food available, and encourages enhanced utilization. An outreach was conducted to Morris Street vehicle campers to inform them of the Food Pantry. Sebastopol Center for the Arts offers a "distance learning" site for school children.

Safe parking remains on Morris Street and on most city streets that do not have posted restricted-hourly limits, and to a limited basis at Sebastopol Community Church.  The City continues to provide handwashing stations on the plaza, Morris Street, and near the Hopmonk, and portable toilets on Morris Street. Unfortunately, three Sebastopol homeless persons have died in recent months, two believed drug-related, one from a shooting allegedly to have followed a dispute, but the core downtown homeless community to date has remained covid-free, and all these services have contributed to this stabilization. Best wishes to all in this December season.

Arthur George
Chair, West County Homeless Advocates
707-793-7835

October 12th, Santa Rosa, CA

Greetings!

Sonoma County received notice this morning of an $11 million award from the State of California to purchase the Azure Hotel for permanent supportive housing for Covid-19 at-risk homeless, previously housed at non-congregate shelters.  A portion of $650 million distributed over the past four weeks, it is intended to secure the housing by December 31st.

Governor Newsom Announces Release of $147 Million in Fourth Round of Homekey Awards

Published: Oct 09, 2020

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$147 million in fourth round of awards provided to 12 applicants for 20 projects totaling 1,109 units

Nearly $600 million in Homekey awards issued to date for communities across the state

Governor also announces $45 million in philanthropic commitments to fund Homekey operating costs

Today’s awards include six projects in the City of Los Angeles totaling 243 units and two projects in the County of Los Angeles totaling 145 units

Sacramento’s Women Escaping a Violent Environment (WEAVE) will provide nine permanent manufactured units and services for women and children escaping unsafe housing situations

SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the release of $147 million in the fourth round of awards for Homekey, California’s innovative, nation-leading $600 million program to purchase and rehabilitate housing – including hotels, motels, vacant apartment buildings and other properties – and convert them into permanent, long-term housing for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness. The most recent round of Homekey awards were provided to 12 applicants for 20 projects totaling 1,109 units.

The Governor also announced a partnership with Enterprise Community Partners, a nonprofit dedicated to developing affordable housing, to distribute $45 million in funding – $20 million from Blue Shield of California and $25 million from Kaiser Permanente – to support operating subsidies for Homekey projects. This funding will provide critical support to local jurisdictions to ensure that those housed through this initiative receive critical services like case management, job training, substance abuse counseling and more.

“Behind every allocation we make for Homekey is the story of a Californian who will no longer have to sleep in a tent, in a car or on the street,” said Governor Newsom. “The partnerships with local leaders and their innovative approaches to homeless solutions are inspiring. From helping victims of domestic violence, to LGBTQ youth, to seniors, we’ve seen bold proposals that help a cross section of Californians struggling to find permanent housing.”

The fourth round of awards includes projects in the following communities:

• The City of Sacramento has been awarded more than $1.5 million for Women Escaping a Violent Environment (WEAVE) to acquire nine permanent manufactured housing units for women and children who are escaping unsafe housing situations, and to provide them with ongoing services.
• The County of Fresno has been awarded $15.3 million to acquire 204 units for its innovative Crossroads Village project, which will provide permanent housing solutions for more than 200 individuals who have been staying in emergency shelter beds.
• Los Angeles County has been awarded $16.1 million for two projects totaling 145 units that will leverage Measure H resources and other state and federal funds to provide supportive services and rental subsidies to residents.
• Orange County has been awarded more than $23 million for two projects totaling 132 units. One project will house those experiencing or at risk of homelessness who have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic before being converted to permanent supportive housing. The other will be immediately rehabilitated and rapidly occupied as interim housing, then renovated and converted into permanent supportive housing.
• Ventura County has been awarded more than $11 million for a 70-unit property to house extremely low-income individuals who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness. It will provide non-congregate sheltering during the COVID-19 pandemic and then transition to permanent supportive housing.
• Marin County has been awarded more than $3.7 million for an 18-unit property that will initially provide interim housing for those experiencing or at risk of homelessness, serving those with a pathway to exit to permanent housing through the county’s well-established Coordinated Entry System. The units will be converted to permanent housing over the next three years.
• The City of Los Angeles has been awarded more than $39.5 million for six projects totaling 243 units, including five motels and a multi-family property with more than 40 units. All will be used immediately for interim housing before being converted to permanent housing.
• Nevada County has been awarded nearly $2.8 million to purchase a hotel that will be converted into interim housing for unsheltered individuals experiencing homelessness. The project will include a navigation program that will offer immediate safe, service-enriched housing by December 15, 2020.
• The County of Sonoma has been awarded nearly $11 million for a project that will convert a motel in the center of Santa Rosa into interim housing with a path to permanent supportive housing. The site is in close proximity to services and will give priority to transitioning individuals housed at non-congregate shelters who are at risk of COVID-19.
• San Bernardino County has been awarded more than $12 million for two projects that will eventually house nearly 270 people. One of the facilities will house up to 133 people while the other will house up to 135 people who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness and who have been impacted by COVID-19.
• The City of Salinas has been awarded $9.2 million to acquire a motel that will be converted to interim housing within 30 days and converted to permanent supportive housing in its second year. Salinas has about one-third of Monterey County’s population but almost 50 percent of the county’s homeless population.
• Placer County has been awarded $1.4 million to rehabilitate a 14-unit motel in the Tahoe Basin that will provide housing to individuals experiencing homelessness who have mental health issues. It is within walking distance of several amenities, including social services and food distribution.

“Confronting and ending homelessness is a team effort, demanding attention, resources, and investment from cities, counties, and our state — and I want to thank Governor Newsom for his commitment to this cause across California,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. “Los Angeles has taken full advantage of Homekey, submitting applications for 16 properties which, if approved, will add hundreds of permanent supportive housing units to our stock and allow us to bring more of our most vulnerable neighbors indoors.”

“I applaud Governor Newsom for his unwavering leadership and investing much needed resources to combat this crisis within a crisis – homelessness amid a pandemic,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas. “Project Roomkey enabled LA County to bring 4,000 vulnerable people indoors in just months – an unprecedented accomplishment that protected their health and that of the larger community while simultaneously providing a lifeline to struggling businesses. We are ready for the next phase, Homekey. We have eight motels lined up to be converted into affordable apartments with services, a key component of our COVID-19 recovery rehousing plan.”

“With the unwavering support of Governor Newsom, Los Angeles County has taken many actions to reduce and prevent the spread of COVID-19 among people experiencing homelessness,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda L. Solis. “Project Roomkey has enabled us to immediately bring some of our most vulnerable unhoused individuals indoors to protect them from contracting the virus and to set them on a path to permanent housing. I remain committed to finding a housing placement for Project Roomkey participants in the County and look forward to working with the other cities and communities to make Project Homekey a successful housing endeavor.”

“Here in Ventura County, we were able to serve over 400 of our most at-risk homeless individuals. On top of that, we were able to transition 80 of those individuals successfully into permanent housing. It just shows that when there’s this commitment community-wide to do this hard work, you can get the results you need,” said Ventura Mayor Matt LaVere. “Homekey is going to help us continue to save lives. We’re going to work with our housing authority and local affordable housing developers to get the projects we need to continue this successful transition from sheltering into permanent housing.”

The three previous awards can be found here:

• September 28, 2020
• September 21, 2020
• September 16, 2020

Building on the success of Project Roomkey, Governor Newsom in July announced the availability of $600 million in funding for Homekey, the next phase in the state’s response protecting Californians experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness, following approval by the Legislature as part of the 2020-21 annual state budget. Of that, $550 million will be provided to cities and counties by California’s direct allocation of the federal Coronavirus Aid Relief Funds, with an additional $50 million provided by the state to supplement the acquisition and provide initial operating funds. The Homekey funds are being expended in compliance with federal regulations in response to COVID-19.

HCD began accepting applications for Homekey on July 22, 2020. Additional awards are expected weekly until all $600 million has been awarded. The response from local governments and housing providers was significant – demonstrating the strength of these state-local partnerships. By the application deadline of September 29, a total of 147 applications had been received from 73 entities statewide, with over $1 billion requested.

County Purchase of the Sebastopol Inn Hearing at Sebastopol City Hall on Tuesday Evening

Editor's Note:  The public meeting on the purchase and operation of the Sebastopol Inn will be held this Tuesday evening at 6pm.  Check the City website for additional information.   

From: *Gale Brownell* 

Date: Wed, Aug 5, 2020 at 2:06 PM
Subject: Proposed use of Sebastopol Inn for supportive housing
To: Sandy Smith 
Cc: Arthur George 

Hi Sandy and Art-

You have mentioned in the past that your group were interested in helping out if there ever was an issue that needed positive public input.

The City Council held its first discussion about the potential conversion of the Sebastopol Inn to Permanent Supportive Housing, initially to house Seniors  and vulnerable people who have been exposed or who are at particular risk to Covid, then as housing for people who have been homeless.  The 31 units would provide not only stable housing, but case management, oversight, and other supportive services.  The initial public comments were, as expected, skewed towards opponents who ask things like why there? And, how would this affect our community? The Mayor is concerned that the public be aware of the potential positive impacts during the Covid epidemic and beyond, and asked that I try to energize potential supporters to make comments at the future hearing(s). They are being held the 1st and 3rd Tuesday evenings, on-line now, of course.

Would you be willing to do the favor of informing your friends of the issue (referring them to me if they want more info)?  I gathered some pertinent information that might help folks become more knowledgeable and able to comment when the opportunity arises. I don’t know when that will be, but have asked the City Clerk, Mary Gourley, to keep me informed.

Here is some information that might be good to now:
 The Feb homeless count found 312 homeless people in the West County, including Guerneville; 101 of those were in Sebastopol. The annual number has varied from about 30 up to this number over the past decade. They range in age from young children and transitional aged youth, up through seniors.

Sebastopol has a number of organizations that provide support and services to homeless people, mostly the local churches which provide some meals, clothing and supplies, referrals, and in two cases, showers.

West County Community Services provides 8 mobile units (soon to be 10). This is permanent supportive housing with an on-site manager and about 1.2 FTE case managers, One is full time at Park Village, the fractional times provide outreach and referral services, and children services at PV. This program has had number of clients who have found the support there to move into their own independent apartments, get the medical care necessary to become more fully functioning, and to find modest employment.

In future comments to the City of Sebastopol Council, I will be emphasizing the following. Please feel free to use these points and to contact me to learn more about any of it.
There is a significant housing and Social services need in SoCo and West County, and
The fact that when people are housed, they are supervised so they are not as potentially problematic as when they are living rough,
That there will be on-site management in the proposed Sebastopol Inn housing,
That some of the more vulnerable and difficult formerly homeless Sebastopol and wider West County residents are no longer living homeless because of programs like the one proposed for the Sebastopol Inn,
The clients will be able to receive the services and referrals they want to help move into independent housing, and to be able to move into the mainstream,
West County Community Services has a continuum of housing and social services to offer, including independent housing throughout the Rapid Re-Housing Program. West County Health Centers are also proactive in helping these clients, and
There are examples of significant client successes from both Park Village and other housing and Supportive Service programs offered by West County non-profits.
We never know a large portion of the people who are homeless in our community because they don’t want to bring any attention to themselves. When they obtain housing and needed services, they generally are at home, not out pan-handling or causing difficulties.

There will be more public hearings available following the two that have been held by the County and the City to date. I will work to keep you updated.

I suspect that ch 7 news will feature a short piece on the proposal in the news tonight, as several folks were interviewed by one of their reporters today.

Yours for more housing and supportive services,
Gale Brownell

HOW RACISM OF SUPERVISORS AND THE BUSINESS ALLIANCE WORKS. by Terry Rowan

HOW RACISM OF SUPERVISORS AND THE BUSINESS ALLIANCE WORKS

 

Racism is a serious charge to make and I don’t make it casually. It is useful therefore to distinguish between the intent of an act and its effects, which can be quite different.

 

Like the tone-deaf statement uttered by the now resigned Director of the Business Alliance “All Lives Matter,” (his answer to “Black Lives Matter”) it’s obvious that white privilege shields incurious minds to blindness concerning our own implicit racism. It’s doubtful that any of the Sonoma Supervisors or Council members, or members of The Business Alliance, see themselves as racists.

 

The Business Alliance is a venerable institution made up of builders, labor unions, wealthy individuals, small and large business owners whose corporate goal is to lobby, share concerns and provide campaign financing to local elective races. All the present Supervisors in the recent March 2020 races received substantial cash contributions to their campaigns from the Business Alliance, and this is an old story. Several of these Supervisors are also members of The Business Alliance and apparently see no conflict in this. The question one might ask but is rarely raised in media is this: What does The Business Alliance want from the Supervisors? If there is no stated quid pro quo between the two, is there some kind of implicit understanding about how policy & practice should work? The answer: what the Business Alliance wants from the supervisors is access to, and careful consideration of, any and all county policies and practices that will directly benefit its members.

 

Two pointed objectives of The Business Alliance are: (1) To influence government decisions affecting the economy, and (2) initiating and supporting actions to reduce non-essential government spending. If we choose one issue, housing, we see where a combination of deliberate, and deliberately omitted, government decisions over a lengthy time, -- in and of themselves rational policy choices, -- conclude in an array of effects that are clearly racist.

 

One example: since the Tubbs fire in October, 2017, 93% of all the building permits allowed throughout Sonoma have been for houses that only 20% of the population can afford. Contrarily, there is virtually no substantial housing startups for the middle or working classes, and very little adequate, affordable rentals for low-income people at all (average rental cost for an 800 sq.ft., one bedroom apartment in Sonoma is $1900/mo). It is not a coincidence that such a de facto housing policy greatly benefits the members of the Business Alliance. Upscale home builders can make big profits on houses costing over a million dollars; realtors’ associations make substantially more commissions selling expensive houses than they would from rental commissions; craft union members make substantially more rebuilding Fountaingrove houses than building downtown apartments.

 

None of these members of the Business Alliance would think of themselves as racists, yet the effects of this understanding between the Business Alliance and their friendly Supervisors virtually shuts out a huge segment of Sonoma from adequate, affordable housing, disproportionately affecting the lives and hopes of the poor, especially people of color.

 

The song, “I only have eyes for you,” aptly describes the view of the Supervisors and members of the Business Alliance: they simply do not see or much care about the needs of half their constituents. As public policy, the supervisors’ treatment of the homeless is especially instructive: perceived as nothing more than a nuisance, objects of forced clearances by police, the homeless are a home-grown moral scandal that is apparently not part of any discussions between the Business Alliance and Supervisors concerning the future well-being of Sonoma and all its citizens.

 

If Congress does not adequately address the imminent termination of the eviction pause (end of July) we will see thousands of low-income people evicted from their apartments. By practice and inclination, the Supervisors and Business Alliance will have no ready response to this calamity. Is Sonoma County the redoubt of the privileged few, working away at exploiting their advantage, their clubby access to elected officials, while the county regresses to something like Caracas, the walled-off rich barely noticing the riff-raff struggling below to hang on?

 

Resigning over a block-headed statement is easy. Leading on housing and other issues of vital importance to the majority of our citizens requires clear-headed and brave leadership willing to enact policies that address the needs of all citizens. Where is it?

Terry Rowan

Kuango Seilah's "I Don't Care If You Believe Me"

Lyrics 

I Don’t Care If You Believe Me © Kuango Seilah

Introduction: To many people still suffering unnecessary pain
Falsely accused of having a victim mentality 
Forced to endure unnecessary pain. 
Falsely accused of self victimization forced to endure humiliation.
We need equal rights for everyone and relief for those who still suffer unnecessary pain.

Verse: And I really don’t care if you believe me, I don’t care bout that no more.
Because I know all the pain and suffering in the world, 
you don’t wanna help end it. 
Along life's way you closed that caring door. 
Sold yourself up the river down the river long ago,
for all you could get paid.
I don’t wanta stand in judgement of you though.
I don’t want that to be my place. 

Chorus: Because  I,  I’m  nobody's hero their shero
and because I, I don’t wanna be self-righteous. 
What I want, what I want, equal rights for everyone
and relief for those who still suffer,
so much pain and bad thangs.

Verse: And I really don’t  care, if you believe that,
I don’t care bout that no more.
I know you justified oppression that went on for centuries, 
you said it was just about the money that could be made,
from the business of servitude and slavery, 
I don’t want to stand in judgement of you though. 
I know people will fight for their rights always,
that’s the decision that I made.

Chrous: Because I,  I’m somebody’s shero, their hero.
And because I, I don’t wanta be self-righteous. 
What I want, what I want is equal rights for everyone 
and relief for all those who still suffer so much pain,
they need real good thangs.

Ending Chorus: I don’t care if you believe me
I don’t care about that no more repeat many Xs

"I Don't Care If You Believe Me" on YouTube
https://youtu.be/nJI_HM_8MMU

Forced Removal of Undesirables: A Long and Terrible History In America

 

By 1900, a little over 237,000 Indians were alive in the United States out of an estimated 12-15 million from over 300 native nations that existed in North America in 1492. This huge loss of life was a result of formal and informal government policy along with settler behavior towards Indians that included outright, planned murder, destruction of primary food resources, famine, malnutrition, enslavement, incessant forced removals, and constant social stress, which desperately weakened bodies and enabled pathogens to thrive.

 

Thomas Jefferson urged “. . . their extermination, or their removal beyond the lakes or Illinois River.”  Benjamin Franklin mused in his autobiography, “ . . . and indeed, if it be the design of Providence to extirpate these savages in order to make room for cultivators of the earth, it seems not improbable that rum may be the appointed means.”

 

When Washington, “the Father of our country” died, his 200 slaved were working on his farm in Virginia. Jefferson owned 600 salves through his lifetime. When Jefferson wrote “All men are created equal,” he did not intend to include women, Indians, black people, or white men without property in that “equality.”

 

The history of US racism, murder, and forced removals of undesirables is long and bloody.

 

In the modern era, homeless people are considered by many otherwise well-meaning elected officials and homeowners to be among the “undesirables.” This latter understanding, operationally an extension of ancient historical attitudes, is based on the idea that property-less people are akin to stateless persons, and since ownership of property was baked in at the onset of the nation as the lynchpin portal to all other rights, a property-less individual does not share in those “inalienable” rights of assembly, free speech and due process.

 

 

Thus, tomorrow, June 24, 2020, the Santa Rosa City Council will once again order the forced removal of a number of homeless individuals to re-scatter them, accomplished as always within the laws and so-called protections passed as sops to soften the truth of what they are really doing. As with Indians and blacks, the intention is to eliminate a social problem by ignoring the facts that produce these conditions: inadequate and unaffordable housing for thousands, little or no health care for thousands, and loss of employment as a function of a cruelly-structured economy.

 

The council members may wish to see themselves as revered like our Founding Fathers have been. They might not wish so if they took a closer look at those Founding Fathers, or their own actions that repeat our terrible crimes against “undesirables.”

 

It appears that the murder of George Floyd and the resulting demonstrations throughout the country may be causing some whites to try to understand their role in perpetuating racism baked into their white privilege that exacerbates the continued suffering of blacks from those unconscious attitudes. Likewise, we as a people have never come to terms with our bloody history of genocide against both Indians and blacks. And likewise, consciousness regarding what elected officials are doing to those without homes in our names is a shameful continuation in other clothes of these ancient behaviors: Instead of fixing human suffering through direct action, let’s just disperse them.”

 

Our collective behavior towards modern undesirables constitutes nothing less than crimes against humanity. Tomorrow, during these crimes, we must be there, and chant

our chant: “Forced removals are crimes against humanity.” We must pass flyers to police that read: “Your participation in forcefully removing unhoused persons is a crime against humanity. This is being recorded for history and legal claims that will be entered in the Office for Civil Rights and the World Court. As a matter of conscience, stop this crime.”

 

Terry Rowan

All quotes used above come from an article in the New York Review of Books entitled

“The Intent Was Genocide” by Peter Nabokov, pp.51-52

Seizing the Opportunity of Addressing both Homelessness and Racism

The National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) and the National Innovation Center (NIC) are leading the effort to direct Federal Emergency Shelter Grant funding into effective program actions which local decision-makers should hear and be guided by.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfZQGNHiK6w

https://youtu.be/ZYRSf20WqQk

News from the Sonoma County Homeless Task Force

Here are the notes from our COVID-19 Provider Meeting on 4/23 at 4pm.

_NCS Outreach/Referral Updates_

·Homeless Task Force now has the info needed to finalize the NCS referral process.  We are working hard to get these protocol documents to you ASAP.__

Proceeding with original plan to have regions work together to refer their most vulnerable individuals with the FQHCs collecting these referrals and sending them to the Intake Coordination team (PHNs on the Homeless Task Force)__

·First batch of referrals has been identified by IMDT and HTF and will move in next week__

_SSU NCS Updates_

·The dorm complex for NCS (Verdot Village) will have about 140 rooms

oUnable to utilize the larger dorm complex due to air circulation requirements

oThe rooms have capacity for more than 1 person but we are not requiring individuals to share space with people they don’t know.  If several people want to stay together, we have the capacity for this

·Temp and symptoms check will be conducted multiple times for all guests prior to entering NCS site

oNo testing prior to entry unless individual displays symptoms

·RESTRICTIONS ON LEAVING CAMPUS – Guests will only be able to leave campus for walks, smoke breaks, purchasing personal items at the store, work, or medical appointments

oThere will be time limits on how long they can be gone for certain activities.

·No smoking anywhere on campus

·Guests’ belongings will be searched during intake and each time they return to the site

·No alcohol, illegal drugs, or cannabis is allowed on site

·Belongings will be limited to 2 totes and 1 personal bag

·Bikes _are_ allowed – one per person, must be operable and stored in room

·Parking will be available for guests with vehicles – must be operable

·Security on site 24/7, service provider on site 7 days/wk during the day

·No pets

·Guests will need to clean their own living spaces (rooms will be cleaned prior to their arrival)

_Transportation_

·Significant concern expressed by service providers regarding their ability to provide transport for all approved NCS referrals.  Request to work in partnership with County on this.

oJenna to bring these concerns back to the HTF team

Best,

Emily Quig

DOC Homeless Task Force

707-322-4759

Homeless in a time of COVID-19

Homeless in a time of Covid19

My friends,  one of my Shelter in Place (SIP) tasks has been to compile a chronology of homeless services in Sonoma County.  If any of you have highlights from the period of 1987 through 2009 please provide them (we have great detail after that).  For example, there were a series of Homeless conferences in the 1980 & 90s; what were the titles and dates?  Grace and Adrienne and I are doing a draft then we'll share it for editing.  We are looking at events, reports and initiatives over time.  Scanned original documents would also be welcomed but not required.

The other thing I contemplate  is our efforts to know what is going on right now.  The clearance of the Joe Rodota Trail was difficult.  The Los Guillicos situation is fraught now that there is Shelter in Place.  The time it takes to set up SSU and hotels and the trailers are all factors people with no home we are living through as I write this.

The County emergency web site proposes use of hotel rooms and shelter changes.
https://socoemergency.org/emergency/novel-coronavirus/homeless-support/
"Priority for placement in alternative locations, such as motels/hotels, will be given to people who are 65 years or older, medically compromised, pregnant, and who are ill and being tested for COVID-19."

It is unclear who is responsible for assuring that people who desperately need this priority placement will get it (who should we call to suggest names?). Initially, based on the weekly provider meetings CDC is conducting, the process involves Whole Person Care, The HEART team, The Inter-Disciplinary Multi-Agency Team, and the homeless team at the Emergency Operations Center.  They identify people who meet the FEMA criteria with some guidance from the Coordinated Entry list.

We have to understand that the shelters are first priority so that the residents there can begin to observe social distancing.  A relatively small number of homeless people from Sam Jones are already at the Sandman Motel.  We know that approximately 30 porta-potties and hand washing stations were placed in various areas of the county.  There is food distribution as well, especially by private individuals, Sonoma Applied Village Services (SAVS), Sonoma Food Runners and Sonoma Acts of Kindness.

We are greatly concerned about those who are not currently being considered for any other services. The encampments are growing as people seek the comfort of friends and minimal sanitation.  This is understandable.  It is not safe to have this kind of group living.  It is also not safe to disperse
these camps (according to the official CDC guidelines).  Anecdotal information tells us that law enforcement knows where the camps are and are, in fact, telling some people where some safe places are to park at this time.   Between 2,000-2,500 unsheltered homeless people in Sonoma County are at risk of contracting the coronavirus.  These are people who need immediate services and support.

It was left to the providers and advocates to announce the porta potty placements.   The HOME Sonoma Leadership Council is not making frequent ongoing status reports.  Maybe the April 23rd meeting will produce this; but I posit that the once a month meeting is not as useful  as we determine the best responses each day. The CDC staff who support HOME Sonoma providers are still overseeing the funding, and they provide  retrospective numeric information.  A practical challenge is to provide "real time" information in a way that does not add to their work burden.  In the same vein, the Homeless Action! notes contain many good ideas on what is needed to help people now and what data we need to share that would help promote success in the future.

The whole community: the county , service providers and the general public should share what is being done or planned?   Although overwhelmed with work, could the Home Sonoma staff take their notes from the provider meetings and share their efforts on the County Emergency services page as linked above?  Sharing of information through such transparency will promote effective responses.

Anyone who cares is asking, "How can we protect our unsheltered homeless sisters and brothers as this pandemic continues?"

--Gerry La Londe-Berg

Los Guilucos Emergency Outdoor Shelter Site

Greetings!

With the impending use of the Los Guilucos site in the Sonoma Valley, let us thank Gerry La Londe-Berg and Kathryn Jurik for their research on its history and use.

On Wed, Jan 15, 2020 at 3:28 PM Gerry La Londe-Berg <sonomabuzz@gmail.com> wrote:

A brief history

The Los Guilucos site has been a public service location for at least 76 years.  Before that it was an “old folks home”.  So the objections and fears of the “neighbors” should be considered in light of the value of dedicated public good the site provides. 

This was the site of Rancho los Guilucos (18,833 acres), which Governor Juan Bautista Alvarado granted to John Wilson and his wife, Ramona Carrillo, sister-in-law of General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo, in 1839. The house, constructed in 1858 by William Hood for his bride, Elsia Shaw of Sonoma, incorporates the original bricks fired on the property. 

The property was purchased in 1943 by the California Department of the Youth Authority for Los Guilucos School for Girls.

http://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3749&context=jclc

“One of the pressing needs was for a school for younger girls. In 1943 the Youth Authority secured a lease on the property and buildings which formerly had been used as the Knights of Pythias Old Peoples' Home in Sonoma County. Youth Authority boy wards were taken from Preston and Calaveras Camp to do the renovating work that was necessary for occupancy of the building. The first girls arrived at the school in November of 1943. By the fall of 1944 sufficient staff had been recruited to handle a population of 100 girls.”

“SCHOOL FOR YOUNGER GIRLS

Assignment to the two schools for girls is made initially on the basis of age, and delinquency record. Girls of the ages 8 to 15 are assigned to Los Guilucos. Girls of the age group 16 to 21 are sent to Ventura.

In some cases girls who are socially mature and have an extensive delinquency record are assigned to Ventura even though their chronological age would indicate placement in Los Guilucos; likewise, some girls of older chronological age who are socially immature may be assigned to Los Guilucos. At Los Guilucos major emphasis is placed on a remedial

educational program. Extensive diagnosis of learning faults is done soon after the young girl is received at the school. The program at the school is informal; an attempt is made to develop the type of activities that are normally found in the public schools. Social adjustment, group living, training for acceptance of responsibility and a broad recreational

and hobby program are considered fundamental to the conditioning of these younger girls. After achievement tests are completed, girls showing weaknesses in the major learning areas are retested. The telebinocular, flash meter and other devices are used for reading deficiencies. Often it is found that there are physical and emotional blocks to reading that have no relationship to mental deficiency. These younger girls reveal all of the common reading faults such as reversals and skips. In some cases there has been complete inability to isolate individual words. In a number of instances emotional blocks which entirely blank out the written page have been isolated. To overcome these severe blockings it is necessary to do intensive individual analysis to discover the emotional basis of the frustrations or humiliations.”

1971 Los Guillicos became co-educational with boys from Fricot Ranch.  It closed shortly thereafter. 

https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/juvenile-justice/history/

Los Guilucos also is the location of the Human Services Department, Family Youth and Children division,  Valley of the Moon Children’s Home.  The first building was built in 19??.  It is still available as a building.  In 2019 PEP Housing considered using it to house elders but that plan was cancelled.  In 2011 (?) a new building and administration center were created at a cost of approximately $25 million. The Valley of the Moon Children’s Foundation spearheaded that effort under the HSD leadership of Diane Edwards and Presiding Juvenile Judge Arnold Rosenfeld.  The new Children’s home is completely secure and approximately 150 yards away from the proposed encampment for people living outdoors. 

The former Juvenile Hall at Los Guilucos was closed because of unsafe conditions.  This effort was led by the Juvenile Justice Commission in 19??.  The current facility opened in December 2005 on the Los Guilucos campus. 

Just one point in regards to the Children's Home being secure. It is secure in the sense that you can't go into it. AND, it is not secure in the sense that children can 'walk out of it.' This was reiterated to me many times when I was a foster parent. The children don't (usually) leave, yet they are not locked in. I know it's weird, but it's been bugging me that no one pointed that out. 

Kathryn Jurik

Thank you, Grace and Gerry for the information.