211 Ventura reports 2,100 local calls in 2024 and offers disaster, housing and ride assistance

Interface Children & Family Services Executive Director Eric Sturnad told the Simi Valley City Council on Tuesday that Ventura County's 211 information-and-referral system handled roughly 58,000 unique residents' contacts in 2024 and that the 211 website had more than 100,000 searches. He said the program curates more than 2,000 health and human services entries and connects callers to resources by phone, text and web.

Sturnad said 2,100 calls came from Simi Valley residents in 2024 and that housing was by far the leading reason people contacted 211. "Housing is always the number one reason why people are calling 211," he said, and noted calls also seek help for income support, transportation and food. Sturnad added that starting in February 2005 211 in California has expanded and that Interface now operates 211 for about a third of the state's counties, allowing surge capacity during local disasters.

The presentation described several specialized 211 programs: a tobacco-cessation project funded by the state; assistance programs for Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) that help residents with medical equipment or elderly mobility needs; a hate-crime reporting project called Ventura versus Hate; and a 211 rides program that helps callers arrange transportation to jobs or appointments when they lack access to vehicles or public transit.

Council members asked specific operational questions. Rocky Rhodes asked whether the homeless-call statistic represented unique callers; Sturnad replied that the figure refers to contacts during an episode and not a one-to-one unique-person count and recommended using multiple data sets for comparison. Councilmember Elaine Litzler and Mayor Fred Kavanaugh asked how 211 identifies callers' locations; Sturnad explained that calls routed by cell-tower location arrive at the correct county 211 center and that staff still confirm ZIP code to narrow resources.

Sturnad said 211 is available three ways: dial the three-digit number, text ZIP to 898211, or visit 211Ventura.org, which includes interactive dashboards and city-level data policymakers can use to see trends and needs. "When we think about disasters ... 211 is very much on the trigger to be able to respond to disasters that happen," he said, citing recent mountain-fire response work and long-term assistance for displaced households.

Councilmembers thanked Interface for the service and asked staff to promote the resource in Simi Valley outreach.