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9.A. - Page 6 of 15 The Downtown Streets Team recently won a "Best Practice" award from the League of California Cities and Institute for Local Government (2018). The League of California Cities and Institute for Local Government Homelessness Task Force Report states: "Founded in 2005, Downtown Streets Team is a nonprofit addressing homelessness by not only providing solutions to homeless men and women, but also challenging them to take an active role in their recovery. This takes the form of having the homeless volunteer with Downtown Streets Team on beautification projects within their respective communities. In return, the volunteers or "team members" receive necessities including a stipend, vital health services and case management. The program offers a 'ladder of success" system where team members can continue to improve their skills and move up the ladder, while gaining additional work responsibilities with the potential for promotion to managerial levels. Team members are also encouraged to share their stories with the community at schools, churches or business associations, which helps to shift the negative perceptions of homelessness. The eventual goal is to transition team members to full-time employment over the course of a year. Downtown Streets Team operates in eight Bay Area communities (San Francisco, San Jose, Palo Alto, Santa Cruz, Hayward, Novato, San Rafael and Sunnyvale) and serves over 750 homeless men and women every week. In addition, through its beautification efforts, the nonprofit has removed over 2.8 million gallons of debris in the last year alone. Funding differs in each community, but sources can include Public Works/Parks and Recreation departments, CDBG (economic development and human services), environmental agencies (water districts, environmental services departments, EPA), corporate sponsorships and Business Improvement Districts, along with county and city funding." The full report can be found here: http://streetsteam.org/documents/homelessness task force report.pdf Staff estimates that this program will cost $300,000 per year. During the initial pilot term, staff would determine whether there are grant opportunities for longer term funding. Currently, both the City and the Redwood City Community Improvement Association (RCIA) provide clean-up and maintenance services to the downtown area. The City and RCIA would need to ensure that the services provided by the Downtown Streets Team are complementary to existing services, and do not conflict with these services. Housing Locator Assister The proposed Housing Locator Assister Pilot Project would assist households who have become homeless or who are at risk of becoming homeless, but who are otherwise unable to access housing locator services which are currently focused primarily on special needs populations in San Mateo County. The person in the Housing Locator Assister position would: • Develop landlord relationships to increase available affordable units; providing landlord incentives as needed City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcity.ore 231