County moves to mitigate closures of Housing Matters day services and MHCan peer center

Santa Cruz County supervisors on Tuesday authorized immediate steps to plan for closures of local day‑service programs that serve people experiencing homelessness.

Housing Matters, a nonprofit that operates a Coral Street campus with showers, mail, laundry and a hygiene bay, announced it intends to end its day‑service operations in March. MHCan, a peer‑run mental‑health drop‑in center, closed unexpectedly earlier in 2025 and has since expressed interest in reconstituting operations but faces financial and insurance obstacles.

County staff said Housing Matters historically served thousands of users annually (about 1,700 who used mail services and over 2,000 who used restrooms; about 335 monthly shower users, per data supplied). The county’s contribution has been about $280,000 per year, split between employment/benefits mail supports and emergency shelter contract allocations.

Supervisors voted unanimously to authorize contract amendments and terminations in response to Housing Matters’ decision, to join City of Santa Cruz planning work groups to develop transition plans for showers, restrooms and mail services, and to have the county’s employment and benefits services division provide interim mail services to beneficiaries. Behavioral health staff said their iHEART outreach team and other county resources will continue outreach and clinical support while the county and community explore fiscal sponsorship or reorganization options for MHCan.

Public commenters — including MHCan's former executive director and faith‑based volunteers — urged the county to prioritize continuity of hygiene, mail, and peer support services. County staff said they will report back with concrete recommendations no later than March 24.

What happens next: Staff will coordinate a city‑county work group to develop transition plans, seek partners (including faith communities) to sustain day services, and present options to the board by March 24.