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Committee recommends continuing Vista safe-parking program with Jewish Family Service under ERF3 funds
Summary
Staff recommended the City Council approve a contract amendment to extend Jewish Family Service’s safe-parking program in Vista using ERF3 funding. Presenters reviewed program outcomes, capacity and costs; committee members pressed for data on exits, children in cars and cost-per-positive-exit metrics.
City staff recommended the City Council approve a contract amendment with Jewish Family Service (JFS) to continue Vista’s safe-parking program using ERF3 funds awarded to the city.
Staff briefed the committee on the program history: the city approved an initial JFS contract for safe parking on Jan. 10, 2023, and the contract has since been amended; the item before the committee would extend services starting June 25, 2025, for 12 months with an option to extend through June 30, 2027, limited to ERF3 funding availability. Staff said the ERF3 application included $1,100,000 for the safe-parking program.
Staff described program requirements in the proposed contract: capacity for a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 25 parking spaces; seven-day operations; staffing that includes case management, housing navigation and on-site security; ADA-compliant restroom facilities and hand-washing stations; adequate lighting and fencing; a pet-friendly environment; and participation in community engagement meetings. The budget breakdown presented was $389,000 in operating costs, $591,000 in staffing, $25,000 in flexible spending and $150,000 in administration, totaling $1,100,000.
Nicole McCune, presenter for the JFS program, provided performance data through April 2025: since inception the safe-parking program has served 230 individuals across 57 households; 138 total household exits since inception (20 reunified with family, 34 into permanent housing, 19 into shelters or with hotel vouchers); as of the last day of April 2025 the program had 22 individuals enrolled (19 households). McCune told the committee the program has provided 5,210 meals and $12,000 in direct financial assistance to participants.
Committee members pressed for more outcome data and cost accounting. One elected official raised the program’s average days to exit to permanent housing — cited in the presentation as 91 days — and used a back-of-envelope calculation of the monthly program cost to question cost-effectiveness compared with alternatives such as master-leased apartments, rental subsidies or expanded rapid rehousing. The same official also asked for counts and total nights for children sleeping in cars; another member emphasized the need to prioritize sheltering families with minors.
Staff and JFS representatives said they will provide more detailed exit tracking and further cost- per-positive-exit comparisons on request. The committee recommended forwarding the contract amendment to City Council for approval; the transcript records discussion and a council-level recommendation but no Council vote was recorded during this meeting.
