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Commission approves membership slate and weather-activated room program; asks staff to brief Board on preserving housing
Summary
The Commission to Address Homelessness approved seven membership recommendations to the Board of Supervisors, authorized a weather-activated room program for families, and voted to ask staff to prepare a memo to the Board prioritizing preservation of housing for currently housed, formerly homeless residents amid federal funding changes.
The Commission to Address Homelessness took three administrative actions on Oct. 15: it approved an ad hoc committee's recommended slate of candidates for the commission, authorized the Office of Care Coordination to operate a weather-activated room program for families, and asked staff to prepare and submit a memo to the Board of Supervisors outlining concerns about Continuum of Care and HUD funding changes.
Membership: The commission approved forwarding seven candidates to the Board of Supervisors for final appointment, including Anthony Trejo (program manager at Hsi OC), Veronica Kelly (director at the Orange County Health Care Agency), Nathaniel Shinagawa (UCI Health senior VP), Marcela Rios Faust (CEO, Human Options), Robert Morse (continuum of care representative), Virgil Esuncio (Orange County Sheriff's Department), and Joshua Bobko (OC Fire Authority). The slate will go to the Board in November for final approval.
Weather-activated room program: Commissioners authorized renewing funding and operations for a weather-activated room program designed to keep families housed during cold-weather periods (the program previously operated from December through April). The motion passed by voice vote and staff will route the item to the Board of Supervisors for consent to fund.
Board memo directive: In response to presentations and public comment about threats to Continuum of Care funding and emergency housing vouchers, the commission adopted a motion directing the Office of Care Coordination to prepare a memo for the Board of Supervisors describing the commission's concerns, prioritizing the preservation of households already housed through COC/HUD assistance, and asking county departments to develop alternative funding recommendations and return to the Board.
Why it matters: The motions are administrative steps intended to position the county to respond quickly if HUD finalizes changes that would reduce funding for permanent supportive housing or emergency voucher programs.
What's next: Staff will forward the membership recommendations to the Board of Supervisors, submit the weather-room consent item for Board approval, and prepare the requested memo and cross-departmental recommendations.
