Background
EveryOne Home is the result of a unique collaboration among community stakeholders, cities and Alameda County government agencies representing three separate care systems — homeless services, HIV/AIDS services and mental health services — that share overlapping client populations. The collaboration arose from their recognition that stable housing is a critical cornerstone to the health and well-being of homeless and at-risk people, and our communities.
Prior to the development of the EveryOne Home Plan (initially called the Alameda Countywide Homeless and Special Needs Housing Plan), there were separate plans and efforts undertaken to create special needs housing and address homelessness in our communities. The Countywide Homeless Continuum of Care Plan was created to coordinate and improve services to homeless people. The countywide AIDS Housing Plan laid out priorities for creating housing to serve low-income people living with HIV/AIDS. By 2004, it was time to update both these plans. At the same time, the Alameda County Behavioral Health Care Services Department wanted to address the housing issues of its clients and identified the need to undertake a community plan in partnership with housing and homelessness agencies.
Rather than continue on their separate paths toward housing solutions, the agencies creating these plans realized that they serve many people with similar needs — and in many cases, the same individuals — and came together in 2004 to develop one plan with mutual goals and joint effort for implementation. The ‘Sponsoring Agencies’ included the County of Alameda’s Housing and Community Development Department, Behavioral Health Care Services, Public Health Office of AIDS Administration, and Social Services Agency; the City of Oakland’s Department of Human Services and Community and Economic Development Agency; the City of Berkeley’s Health and Human Services Department and Housing Department; and the Alameda Countywide Homeless Continuum of Care Council.
The collective knowledge, funding and expertise of the collaborative, joined with extensive input and guidance from a wide variety of community-based organizations and service consumers, yielded the Alameda Countywide Homeless and Special Needs Housing Plan. The plan is a regional and multifaceted response to address the social and economic issues of homelessness and housing instability that affect communities throughout the county.
Through the plan, the sponsoring agencies and community stakeholders hope to:
- build on successful programs in Alameda County and elsewhere that have proven to stably house and increase the quality of life for many people, including those with long histories of homelessness and multiple disabilities.
- bridge the historical divide between housing and service systems, and develop innovative ways of combining resources in order to more effectively serve populations in need.
- maintain and increase resources that are dedicated to serving people who are homeless or are living with serious and persistent mental illness and HIV/AIDS, and increase political and popular support for these and related issues.
The collaborative strategies of EveryOne Home brought together numerous stakeholders in addition to the sponsoring agencies: the cities in the county, housing and social service providers, homeless and formerly homeless persons and their family members, funders, faith-based representatives and the community at large.
Successful implementation of the plan will require the support and participation of many more individuals, organizations, sectors and jurisdictions. New partners and supporters are emerging as implementation of the plan gains momentum with adoption and endorsement by cities, governmental entities, the County Board of Supervisors and numerous civic and community groups.
DID YOU KNOW?
The Denver Housing First Collaborative targets people who have been homeless for long periods of time, many of whom live on the streets, and moves them into permanent housing. The program reduced the public cost of services (health, mental health, substance abuse, shelter and incarceration) by $15,773 per person per year, more than offsetting the $13,400 annual cost of the supportive housing.
Colorado Coalition for the Homeless
Q: Where can I view additional details about EveryOne Home?
A: The full plan is detailed here: Alameda Countywide Homeless and Special Needs Plan. Supporting data and detail for the plan can be viewed in the Companion Materials.