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Moreno Valley council approves RFP to seek partners for Homekey Plus housing grant
Summary
The city council voted unanimously to authorize a request for proposals to identify partners and sites for a Homekey Plus application ahead of the state'set May 30, 2025 deadline, staff said. The grant targets housing with integrated mental-health services and requires three years of operation after grant funding ends.
The Moreno Valley City Council voted unanimously April 1 to direct staff to issue a request for proposals seeking partners and sites to support a Homekey Plus application, a state program that pairs housing and mental-health services.
City Manager Bridal Mohan told the council the Homekey Plus funding is part of Proposition 1 (approved by voters in March 2024) and is backed by state bond proceeds administered by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). "This particular funding, roughly $1,096,000,000 to go towards housing, as well as mental health related housing," Mohan said during the staff presentation.
The RFP will seek partners who own land and can operate eligible project types at no cost to the city, Mohan said. Staff proposed a short RFP period of about two to three weeks so an application can be submitted by HCD's hard deadline of May 30, 2025. Mohan and staff emphasized that the program requires projects to commit to at least three years of continued operation after grant funds end and that county concurrence is required for projects tied to behavioral-health funding.
Council members discussed the practical challenge of locating eligible land and partners inside Moreno Valley. "A lot of agencies and entities and jurisdictions up and down the state are still struggling to answer that exact question," Mohan said, noting county representatives also had not identified specific project sites. Council member Gonzales and others said they supported the RFP as a way to identify potential partners and to preserve the city's eligibility for the state funding.
A motion to approve staff's recommendation passed 4-0 (Council member Bernard: yes; Council member Gonzales: yes; Mayor Pro Tem Baca Santa Cruz: yes; Mayor Cabrera: yes). The staff report described the proposed RFP timeline and requirements, including coordination with county behavioral-health officials and HCD application materials. If selected, an applicant, not the city, would be expected to own or control land and provide services required by the grant.
Clarifying details from the staff presentation and motion: the staff report described the Homekey Plus pool as funded through Proposition 1 bond proceeds; indicated HCD issued application guidance and later set a hard application deadline of May 30, 2025; stressed county concurrence and three years of post-grant operation are required; and estimated the statewide program funding pool at roughly $1.096 billion as described by staff. The RFP would run roughly two to three weeks with subsequent council review if staff identifies an eligible partner.
The council did not commit city-owned land or appropriate funds tonight; council approval authorized issuance of the RFP and return to the council if a candidate partner is identified.
Votes at a glance
- Motion: Approve staff recommendation to release an RFP seeking partners and sites for a Homekey Plus application and to submit an application by the HCD deadline. - Mover: not specified in the public transcript. - Second: not specified in the public transcript. - Vote: 4-0 (Bernard: yes; Gonzales: yes; Mayor Pro Tem Baca Santa Cruz: yes; Mayor Cabrera: yes). - Outcome: approved.
