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Civil grand jury urges coordinated homelessness services; city forms Department of Homelessness & Supportive Housing
Summary
The civil grand jury called for a unified strategy, improved data and performance-based contracting for homelessness services. The newly formed Department of Homelessness & Supportive Housing (HSH) told the committee it will consolidate programs, create a coordinated-entry system, expand navigation centers and set targets including ending chronic veteran homelessness.
Jean Bojigis, presenting for the 2015–16 civil grand jury, said the panel found San Francisco’s homeless programs were fragmented, poorly coordinated and hampered by data and contract-monitoring gaps. "We saw that the homeless services evolved...were handled by multiple agencies," the grand-jury speaker said, summarizing the investigation’s reasons for recommending a single coordinating department and better data-sharing.
Jeff Kositzky (representing the newly created Department of Homelessness & Supportive Housing, HSH) described the new department’s early work: vendor selection for a coordinated-entry/data system, a strategic plan due in November, and plans to integrate navigation centers and expand the navigation-center model across the city. Kositzky set ambitious near-term goals, including ending chronic veteran homelessness by the end of 2017 and reducing the unsheltered population by 50% (timeline and metrics to be refined during strategic planning).
The committee accepted several agreed findings and amendments and, "without objection," filed Item 5 and forwarded the recommendations and responses to the full board for further action and continued oversight.
Why it matters: The jury’s recommendations and the new HSH’s formation aim to improve outcomes by centralizing leadership, improving data collection and introducing performance-based contracting and daily transparency dashboards.
Next steps: HSH will finalize strategic planning, negotiate a vendor for coordinated entry, integrate navigation centers into an outcomes framework and report progress to the board as the implementation proceeds.
