Elk Grove City Council approves $2.5 million contract for homelessness services
The Elk Grove City Council approved a contract for management of its supportive housing sites on Wednesday. The move comes after the bankruptcy of the previous contractor led to years of underutilization.
The Council voted unanimously to approve a contract with Volunteers of America - Northern California/Northern Nevada, Inc. (VOA) for management of the city’s four permanent shared housing and three transitional housing sites.
The sites have been underutilized since the 2023 bankruptcy of Sacramento Self-Help Housing, the organization that had provided property management and social services. The nonprofit shuttered after Sacramento County decided not to renew about $5 million in contracts, a move that came at a time when the organization faced significant criticism for its treatment of residents.
Elk Grove’s transitional housing sites are currently empty, and the permanent supportive housing sites are less than half occupied, according to a city council report.
The contract will run through November 2026 with two possible one-year extensions upon city approval. VOA will be responsible for both property management and support services. VOA manages multiple sites in the city of Sacramento, including supportive housing facilities dedicated to helping seniors, veterans, families and people living with AIDS.
While vacancies have plagued the properties, there is significant interest in transitional housing, Diane Lampe told the council during the public comment period. “There’s been a lot of traffic to our website hoping to partake in the opportunity of the transitional houses,” she said. Lampe, a former teacher and counselor for the Elk Grove Unified School District, sits on the board of directors for Elk Grove HART, a nonprofit that supports the city’s unhoused population.
The most recent Point-in-Time Count found 83 people experiencing homelessness in Elk Grove, but the city estimates that there are closer to 125 unhoused people. People in need of supportive housing in Elk Grove tend to be older, creating a need for senior supportive housing the city is working to meet. Elk Grove also has a 30-bed homeless shelter that has helped 70 people since January, according to the city’s website.
