Tiny homes, more rental assistance, coming to Sacramento in coming weeks

 Sacramento (Thursday, Jan. 14, 2020) As the City works to adopt a homeless housing master plan, Mayor Darrell Steinberg on Thursday announced interim steps to provide shelter quickly to scores of people sleeping outdoors and rental assistance to thousands more at risk of becoming homeless.

A proposed “Safe Ground” ordinance allowing sanctioned tent or tiny home encampments on public or privately owned land will come to City Council on Tuesday for final approval. As part of the vote, Mayor Steinberg will ask the Council to direct staff to place 60 tiny homes on public or privately owned sites within 30 days. Readily available tiny homes and cabins, some originally developed for disaster relief, can be deployed and assembled within days or even minutes.

Mayor Steinberg will not specify the sites. That will be up to City Councilmembers working with the City Manager’s Office. The City already has an inventory of eight Pallet homes ready for installation when the first site is found. For more information on Pallet homes, click here for the Seattle-based company’s website and here to see a Pallet home being assembled at Sacramento City Hall.

“The only way we can make a difference in the number of people experiencing homelessness is to provide housing options on a mass scale in locations throughout the city, and that’s what the master plan will accomplish,” Mayor Steinberg said. “We also know that people are suffering now, and we have to do what we can in the moment to help alleviate that suffering and the impact of unsheltered homelessness on our neighborhoods and businesses.”

City staff has produced a map showing 1,798 potential sites around the city that are more than 500 feet away from a residence or sensitive use.

Newly elected City Councilwoman Katie Valenzuela said she’s confident that tiny homes can be deployed in District 4, which includes downtown and midtown.

“The District 4 community has been working hard to identify appropriate sites and mitigation strategies for short-term shelter solutions, and would enthusiastically welcome the placement of tiny homes or cabins in our community,” Valenzuela said. “With so many people sleeping on the street in the rainy and cold weather, we cannot wait any longer to move people indoors. These tiny homes are not a permanent solution, but could provide critical relief to a community in desperate need. I fully support deploying them as soon as we can.”

Vice Mayor Jay Schenirer, who represents District 5, has devoted countless hours to find a site for a large Navigation Center in his district. One has been approved for Alhambra and Broadway near the W/X freeway, and site work has begun. But construction was delayed by opposition by the Trump administration and the shelter now won’t open for several months.

“It’s important that we build larger shelters to meet the magnitude of the problem, but every tiny home helps alleviate suffering, and it’s something we can do right now,” Schenirer said. “I will work with the community to find land.”

Also Thursday, Mayor Steinberg announced that the City of Sacramento would receive $15.3 million from the newly passed federal stimulus package for additional rental assistance for families at risk of becoming homeless. The money is expected to arrive by Jan. 26 and will be administered by the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency, which earlier this year distributed $4.7 million in federal funds allocated by the City Council.

Mayor Steinberg thanked U.S. Reps Doris Matsui, D-Sacramento and Ami Bera for their support of the measure.

“For months, we have asked Sacramentans to stay at home as much as possible – because we know that home is the safest place one can be in a pandemic,” said Congresswoman Matsui. “However, as many in our region face an uncertain path forward from this crisis, it has become increasingly difficult to pay rent and ensure that they can stay housed. “That is why we fought to secure $25 billion dollars for rental assistance in the latest COVID relief package. I am pleased that the City of Sacramento will be receiving $15.3 million of these funds and will be able to continue their important work supporting renters in our community.”

 SHRA Executive Director La Shelle Dozier said the new funds are greatly needed to prevent more people from becoming homeless.

 “Thousands of Sacramento families find themselves on the brink of losing their housing because of loss of income or jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Dozier said. “The initial CARES funding from the City of Sacramento has enabled SHRA to help over 880 families stay in their homes through the Sacramento Emergency Rental Assistance (SERA) program. This additional funding will help many more families avoid eviction and homelessness and give them breathing room while they deal with the challenges of this unprecedented public health crisis.”

Earlier in January, the City Council took two major, longer-term actions to address the crisis of unsheltered homelessness in Sacramento. Over the next few months staff members will work with City Council offices to hold a series of workshops on siting, financing and other aspects of a master plan for housing thousands of people experiencing homelessness on sites throughout the city. The plan will go to the Council for an up or down vote in June.

The Council also voted to approve restarting the process to issue a $100-million bond to build affordable housing and permanent supportive housing in the city. Council members approved the concept in January 2020, but bond issuance was stalled because of the pandemic and its effect on City revenues.

City Treasurer John Colville will now conduct a general fund stress test and analysis of debt ratios. If he gives the green light, the bond will come back to City Council for final approval.

##########