Gavin Newsom’s 100-day homeless challenge will give cities a chance at more housing money
California cities and counties will have a shot at more housing money if they meet goals designed to help homeless people off the streets through a “100-day challenge” Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday.
Local governments will set their own goals, such as getting 100 veterans off the streets or building 100 housing units, Newsom said. If they meet them, they’ll have a shot at a piece of $35 million in additional state housing money.
As part of the challenge, Sacramento is pledging to secure land to build up to 100 housing units for homeless people, Mayor Darrell Steinberg said.
“We want to inspire community action at the local, county and regional level,” Newsom said during a Thursday event hosted by the Veterans Resource Centers of America at Mather Veterans Village, which serves formerly homeless veterans. “If you don’t meet your goals, we’re not going to reward you.”
The $35 million is part of $650 million in the state budget to help local governments address homelessness. It’s a relatively small amount of money for housing in California, which needs millions more homes to house its growing population. But Steinberg, whose city is counting on at least $14 million from the state before any supplemental money from the challenge, said every little bit helps.
The challenge is Newsom’s second homeless-related announcement in as many days and comes as President Donald Trump is threatening federal action if California officials don’t address homelessness. On Wednesday, Newsom announced hiring a former Trump administration homelessness official whom the president forced out of the federal government last month.
Newsom said his new part-time adviser Matthew Doherty has told him “intimate details” about Trump’s plans for California homelessness but declined to describe them to reporters Thursday. Newsom said he anticipates more details will be announced Dec. 10 when Trump is expected to name Doherty’s replacement as director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness.
“I imagine at that moment we’ll be hearing a lot from their new director,” Newsom said. “I imagine he is tasked to complete the work they want done to – not with – the state of California.”
Some of the land Steinberg wants to secure could be used for “cabin” style homeless shelters, his spokeswoman Mary Lynne Vellinga said.
Council members have suggested two sites in north Sacramento for the cabins. Councilman Allen Warren has proposed a site owned by Twin Rivers Unified School District at the corner of Edgewater Road and Lampasas Avenue in the Noralto section of north Sacramento. The district has listed that property for sale for $440,000.
Councilman Jeff Harris has proposed a city-owned site near Garden Valley Elementary School in the Northgate section of north Sacramento to be used for 49 cabins for women and children.
The city could secure one of those sites as part of its plan to fulfill the challenge, or it could secure a different site, Vellinga said.
“Cabin” style shelters can contain between one and four beds, and sometimes include storage, chairs, counter tops and cupboards. They do not typically include private bathrooms, but provide shared bathroom access in a nearby community building, along with laundry, showers, and services.
This story was originally published December 5, 2019 at 12:59 PM.
