{"body": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard", "date": "2014-02-19", "page": 1, "text": "Social Service Human Relations Board\nMinutes of the Special Meeting, February 19, 2014\n1.\nCALL TO ORDER and ROLL CALL\nPresident Biggs called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. Present were Vice President Villareal, and members\nRadding and Williams. Absent were members Watkinson, Blake, and Robles-Wong\n2.\nAPPROVAL OF MINUTES\nThe Minutes of the Regular Meeting, January 23, 2014, were approved as presented.\nM/S Radding|Williams Unanimous\n3.\nAGENDA ITEMS\n3-A.\nREVIEW AND RECOMMENDATIONS REGARDING COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT\nBLOCK GRANT (CDBG) NON-HOUSING COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PUBLIC SERVICES\nFUNDING ALLOCATION FOR FY 2014-15 - CLAUDIA YOUNG - COMMUNITY\nDEVELOPMENT PROGRAM MANAGER, CITY OF ALAMEDA - ACTION item with a suggested\ntime limit of 60 minutes\nMs. Young made a PowerPoint presentation which included a summary of the Community Development\nBlock Grant process (PowerPoint included in the 2/19 packet). She informed the Board that the estimated\nfunding reduction to CDBG is expected to be 5% for the FY 2014 - 15, resulting in the total amount available\nfor Non-Housing Public Services of $185,625, as opposed to full funding, which would be $193,815.\nFor FY14-15, eight organizations submitted proposals for a total requested amount of $268,770 Housing\nDivision staff convened a three-person panel to review the proposals. The panel developed a funding strategy\nbased on the priorities and recommendations included in the Board's \"2014 Needs Letter\" that was approved\nby the City Council and took into consideration a 5% reduction in funding.\nMs. Young then presented a spreadsheet that included the panel's funding recommendations for both Full\nFunding and a 5% Reduction in Funding (Spreadsheet included in the 2/19 packet). She concluded by sharing\nthat, on May 6, 2014, the City Council will hold another public hearing to consider CDBG funding\nrecommendations for FY 2014 - 15, including the Non-Housing Public Service recommendations reviewed\ntonight.\nSpeakers:\n(Speakers were invited to email the text of their presentation, and/or information regarding their program.\nFor those who did not, Staff has provided a summary of their presentation).\nB\\PACKETS\\2014Febuary2014)MINUTES Febuary 2014.doc", "path": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard/2014-02-19.pdf"}
{"body": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard", "date": "2014-02-19", "page": 2, "text": "Irene Kudarauskas - Executive Director\nAlameda Family Services\nHi Jim -Below is what I would love to see included in the minutes.\nAlameda Family Services is requesting CDBG funds for safety net services for seniors, the fastest growing\npoverty group in the City of Alameda according to the SSHRB community assessment. We were not planning\nto serve seniors when we opened our AFS West program two years ago but they found us and we found that\nthey had nowhere else to go. The program we are proposing is a half time case manager to be housed at\nMastick Senior Center and will focus on senior housing permanence. The program differs from ECHO and\nBuilding Futures case management programs in several ways: AFS provides (1) housing transition services -\nlocating housing, applying for housing, walking clients through the process to secure housing, and obtaining\nresources for household items; (2) housing stability services - developing a plan for a system of care, applying\nfor social security, food stamps, and affordable health care, advocating with clients during evictions; and (3)\naccessible services - through home visiting and multiple locations in the City of Alameda. Education and\nOutreach will be provided to 120 seniors and 25 households will receive case management. The goal is to\nachieve stable permanent housing and to address the physical and mental health needs of seniors.\nJackie Krause, Senior Services Manager - Mastick Senior Center\nMs. Krause shared concern for the lack of homeless shelters and services currently available for seniors.\nShe has provided staff with the letter below that she sent earlier this year in support of Alameda Family\nServices' application for CDBG funding.\nB\\PACKETS\\2014Febuary2014\\MINUTES Febuary 2014.doc", "path": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard/2014-02-19.pdf"}
{"body": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard", "date": "2014-02-19", "page": 3, "text": "Mastick Senior Center\n1155 Santa Clara Avenue, Alameda, California 94501 (510) 747-7500\nJanuary 28, 2014\nCity of Alameda Community Services Human Relations Board\nc/o Jim Franz, Administrative Specialist 1\n2263 Santa Clara Avenue\nAlameda, CA 94501\nDear Mr. Franz:\nThis is a letter of support for Alameda Family Services application for Community Development Block\nGrant (CDGB) funding for their proposed Housing Permanency Senior Case Management program.\nThe funding request is to hire a staff person responsible for identifying and supporting seniors who\nneed assistance with housing permanency. Services will include individual and family case\nmanagement, housing permanence planning, home visiting and housing advocacy.\nThe Alameda Family Services has been providing service in our community for 35 years and recently\nrealized a void in service when launching the Family Support Center in the west-end neighborhood.\nDuring the year, Alameda Family Services has served an unanticipated senior population seeking case\nmanagement services in the areas of housing permanence, food security and health care. The\nobjective of the proposed Housing Permanency Senior Case Management program is to provide case\nmanagement service geared toward seniors to assist them with safely aging in place within their own\nhomes or to help them with transitioning to housing which may be better suited for their current\nneeds.\nMastick Senior Center is a division of the City of Alameda Recreation and Park department providing\nrecreational and educational programs, as well as information about available social and support\nservices. Our program has provided service to the community for 34 years. However, Mastick Senior\nCenter has never been staffed with a social worker and is ill-equipped to facilitate case management\nwith on-going coordination with affiliated agencies, such as counselors or other insurance agencies,\nand act as advocates between service recipients and the agencies providing service.\nThirty-five percent of Alameda's population is 50 years of age and older; thus, making Alameda's\npopulation substantially older than the state of California overall, and older than its nearest neighbors\n(Oakland, San Leandro). At present, 7,000 Baby Boomers turn 65 years of age every day. This will\ncontinue for the next 14 years. As the population in our community ages, there will be a need for\nadditional and new services to manage the health, safety, welfare, psychological, and social needs.\nThe services being proposed by Alameda Family Services will be an asset to Alameda seniors and\ntheir families and will help create a more sustainable Alameda.\nSincerely,\nJackie Krause, Senior Services Manager\nMastick Senior Center\nCC: Amy Wooldridge, Director\nAlameda Recreation and Park Department\nAlameda Family Services\nB\\PACKETS(2014Febuary2014\\MINUTES Febuary 2014.doc", "path": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard/2014-02-19.pdf"}
{"body": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard", "date": "2014-02-19", "page": 4, "text": "After Ms. Krause's presentation, President Biggs ask that, \"since the City of Alameda provides the services at\nMastick Senior Center, would the type of services suggested in the AFS application be appropriate for the\nCity to take on?\" Ms. Krause responded that the focus of Mastick has been, and continues to be, on recreation\nand other related activities, as opposed to other social services.\nMarjorie Rocha, Executive Director and Angie Watson-Hajjem, Fair Housing Specialist\nECHO Housing\nGood evening,\nMy name is Marjorie Rocha. I am the Executive Director of ECHO Housing. To my right is Angie Watson-\nHajjem, Fair Housing Specialist. I want to thank you for your consideration of ECHO's funding request to\nprovide housing counseling services to City of Alameda low income renters.\nECHO Housing has been providing fair housing counseling, investigation, and enforcement for Bay Area\nrenters for the past 48 years. ECHO was founded in 1964 and incorporated in 1965 as a fair housing agency.\nWe are a Qualified Fair Housing Enforcement Organization and are designated as a HUD-approved\ncomprehensive housing counseling agency.\nBut, our most important program is fair housing counseling which informs renters of their rights with regard\nto fair housing laws, and investigation which uncovers illegal housing discrimination against protected\nclasses. The protected classes are race, color, national origin, disability, age, gender, gender identification,\nsexual orientation, marital status, familial status, source of income, and arbitrary discrimination.\nAs a Qualified Fair Housing Enforcement Organization we conduct investigations and testing of fair housing\ncomplaints. If a case warrants in-depth investigation, ECHO uses trained testers. The testing process is a\ndouble blind study in which testers are given a profile, similar in every respect except for protected class. The\ntester is fulfilling the role of a potential renter, and will provide details of their observations to the Fair\nHousing Specialist for analysis.\nIf discrimination is found, we may make referrals to civil rights attorneys, the Dept of Fair Employment and\nHousing, or the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development. As an enforcement agency, we work side-by-side\nwith these entities for the enforcement of meritorious claims. In addition, to our work with renters, we\nprovide educational services to members of the housing industry.\nEvery year we conduct a systemic fair housing audit for the City of Alameda to uncover hidden forms of\nhousing discrimination. As a result of our annual audit, we offer training to non-compliant landlords\nregarding fair housing laws and good business practices.\n(Angie explained the difference between an inquiry, complaint, and audit.).\nOur fair housing program helps to fulfill the City's HUD mandate to affirmatively further fair housing.\nAdditionally, we provide tenant/landlord counseling and conciliation services, providing renters and housing\nproviders counseling and education on rental rights and responsibilities, such as evictions, deposits, and\nB\\PACKETS\\2014Febuary2014\\MINUTES  Febuary 2014.doc", "path": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard/2014-02-19.pdf"}
{"body": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard", "date": "2014-02-19", "page": 5, "text": "habitability issues. We provide referrals to legal assistance, and offer mediation or conciliation services when\nappropriate.\nECHO's Counselors are available Monday thru Friday, from 9 am to 5 pm. The majority of our work with\nclients is done over the phone. However, if needed, we will see clients face-to-face and we will make house\ncalls to clients who are house-bound. I have provided you with a chart comparing Alameda's hourly cost for\nboth Fair Housing and Tenant/Landlord Services to that of other contracts providing the same services. As\nyou will see, Alameda's hourly rate in both FH and TL services is far less than the average rate of all other\nHousing Counseling contracts.\nLiz Varela, Executive Director - Building Futures with Women and Children\nMs. Varela thanked the Board and staff for their continued support of Midway Shelter and the Homeless\nPrevention Services provided by Building Futures. She shared that Building Futures is seriously concerned\nthat it will no longer be able to keep all three of its shelters open. It is only with local support, as demonstrated\nby the CDBG funding, the work of the Alameda Homeless Network, and the generosity of the residents of\nAlameda, that BFWC has been able to keep the shelter open for almost 30 years. Midway has ranked 2nd and\n3rd in the County regarding having the best record for helping its clients escape the cycle of homelessness, and\nbecome permanently housed. In addition to a safe place to stay, andthree 3 meals a day, Midway Shelter\nprovides counseling, and a variety of other services to assist clients in accessing permanent housing.\nShe added that, while BFWC received extra funding from HUD this year for Homeless Prevention, those\nfunds will not be available next year. The City of Alameda CDBG funds are the only local source of rental\nassistance, and other homeless prevention services, and at this time, there are no comparable services in either\nOakland or San Leandro.\nBarbara Bernstein-Executive Director\nEden I&R, Inc.\nFor the benefit of New Board members/brief 211 history\n211 national 3 digit phone # set aside by the FCC for access to health & human service info\n211 centers are Managed & funded locally\n2003; EIR designated by CPUC as first NO CA 211 for Ala Co\nTook 4 years to create what was considered a sustainable funding plan:\nWorked w/ the city mayors and city managers to develop a \"fair & equitable funding plan\"\nSplit the costs of the service: 1/3 cities; 1/3 county; 1/3 private sector (based on pop)\nLaunched in 2007: 10,000 calls/yr; Now: approx. 10,000 calls/mo countywide\nB\\PACKETS(2014Febuary2014)MINUTES Febuary 2014.doc", "path": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard/2014-02-19.pdf"}
{"body": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard", "date": "2014-02-19", "page": 6, "text": "In the city of Alameda, FY13: handled 2,752 calls providing over 5,600 referrals\nMost people call on behalf of themselves for basic health, housing & human service needs\nWe link people in need w/ safety net progs, some of whom are funded by your city,\nTherefore complementing and supplementing city of Alameda services\nAlso link ADVOCATES who call on behalf of people in need\nLike parents, case managers, doctors, teachers, employers, neighbors\nOver 50% of 211 calls are housing related\nEIR has a unique housing database of over 80,000 units\nIn addition to the health & human services database of over 2800 programs\nOnly agency that calls shelters EVERY DAY for bed availabilities\nSome of our calls are emergency in nature: Young woman on BART tracks example\nIn addition to the traditional 211 referrals, we also provide additional eligibility screenings when requested\nand contracted to do so\nEITC income screenings and VITA site referrals during tax season\nCalFresh & MediCal screenings\nAlso, during and after a Disaster or local emergency, 211 has a seat in the county's Emergency Operations\nCenter;\n211 becomes the public communication system -- Diverting calls away from 911\nAnd instructing the public about such things as:\nWhat hospitals & transportation routes are open; whether or not to drink the water and/or shelter in\nplace (Jim: I think I didn't get to this in my speech)\nBottom line: no one knows when they might need resources for themselves, a family member, or someone else\nyou care about. (e.g., substance abuse; domestic violence; unemployment resources; in home senior services)\nThanks to the ongoing support of all of the cities, the county and the private sector,\n211 continues to answer critical -- sometimes life threatening-- calls 24/7 & in multiple languages.\nB\\PACKETS\\2014Febuary2014)MINUTES Febuary 2014.doc", "path": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard/2014-02-19.pdf"}
{"body": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard", "date": "2014-02-19", "page": 7, "text": "Francel D'Andrea, Executive Director\nLegal Assistance for Seniors\nMs. D' Andrea, thanked the Board and staff for considering their application. While in the past, they have\nreceived funding from the State, this funding is anticipated to be reduced by 50%. Their County funding is\nalso at risk of being reduced, their services depend on leveraging other funding from local communities and\nother sources.\nThe services and programs provided by Legal Assistance for Seniors include:\n(1) Free legal assistance in our practice areas of Elder Abuse, Guardianship of Minor Children, Public\nBenefits, Access, Senior Naturalization, and Health Law.\n(2) Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program (HICAP): Free and unbiased counseling on health\ninsurance issues for Medicare-eligible individuals.\n(3) Community Education and Outreach: Free public presentations on legal and health-related topics for\nseniors, caregivers, and service providers. This program also includes our Annual Conference on Elder Abuse,\nwhich provides educational and networking opportunities for professionals from various fields relating to\nseniors and aging.\nLegal Assistance for Seniors will provide free legal services to 45 low-income Alameda seniors within our\npractice areas of Elder Abuse, Guardianship of Minor Children, Public Benefits Access, Senior Naturalization,\nand Health Law. These services will make seniors and their families safer and more financially and\nemotionally secure. Our Guardianship services in particular strengthen whole families by helping kin\ncaregivers (such as grandparents) gain the rights of legal guardianship over minors in their care. In addition,\nLAS will conduct 8-10 Community Education presentations for Alameda seniors and service providers,\nhelping them to understand legal and healthcare-related issues impacting the elder. Results are tracked through\nclient evaluations and analyzed in weekly case reviews, under the supervision of the Managing Attorney, and\nclient information and demographics are captured in a specialized legal database. These predictions are\ngrounded in data about LAS' long history of work in the City of Alameda. We are currently seeking support\nfrom the city to maintain our high levels of service for Alameda residents.\nErin Scott - Executive Director\nFamily Violence Law Center\nNotes for Presentation to City of Alameda SSHRB re: FY 14-15 Application\nFamily Violence Law Center provides life-saving legal services that help reduce homelessness and family\ndisintegration and help families achieve safety and stability. These services primarily involve assistance with\nB\\PACKETS\\2014Febuary2014)MINUTES Febuary 2014.doc", "path": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard/2014-02-19.pdf"}
{"body": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard", "date": "2014-02-19", "page": 8, "text": "obtaining restraining orders and include legal representation as well as paperwork preparation and advice and\ncounsel. Research has found restraining orders to be effective and empowering.\nFamily Violence law Center is well integrated in to the City of Alameda's system of service delivery for\ndomestic violence survivors. Contacting our 24-hour crisis intervention department is part of the Alameda\nPolice Department's protocol for every domestic violence incident. Our crisis line was on the banner and\npostcards used in the city for teen dating violence awareness month. We are an active participant in the\nservices collaborative meetings and the domestic violence task force. We have a close working relationship\nwith Building Futures for Women and Children, the other main domestic violence services provider in the\ncity, and the Coast Guard.\nLast year we served a total of 157 City of Alameda domestic violence survivors and provided 25 of those\nsurvivors with legal services.\nTroy Gilbert Executive Director\nAlameda Food Bank\n1) The Alameda Food Bank has re-submitted a request for this year, requesting 5K.\n2) This is substantially less than we had requested before. We currently had a very good fundraising year\nin 2013, and we are engaged in a strategic planning process for 2014.\n3) We would currently like to hold off on CDBG requests, until we have done a little more work thinking\nthrough what parts of our social service are more appropriate for city grant requests, and what parts of\nour social service are more appropriate for private donation. We are in good shape financially to get\nfood to needy Alamedans for this year.\n4) We are happy to help other social services agencies in Alameda by requesting less for this year and\nthus making the \"pie\" bigger for other organizations.\n5) We anticipate a larger \"ask\" for CDBG funds for next year.\nDiscussion\nPresident Biggs shared that he and Member Radding had the opportunity to review and evaluate all of the\ngrant applications. Since the commitment to fund Eden I&R's 211 program and the mandated Fair Housing\nfunding were made outside of any prior CDBG discussions, he and Member Radding recommended that these\nfunds be reduced, and the extra funds be used to fund Alameda Family Services, and increase the funding for\nthe Food Bank.\nMember Williams shared that she would also like to see Alameda Family Services receive funding, but\nthought the $5000 was appropriate for the Alameda Food Bank, since that was the amount of its request.\nB\\PACKETS\\2014Febuary2014)MINUTES  Febuary 2014.doc", "path": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard/2014-02-19.pdf"}
{"body": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard", "date": "2014-02-19", "page": 9, "text": "Vice President Villareal stated that, compared to the extraordinary services provided by these agencies, the\namount of funding being discussed was extremely small.\nMotion to recommend FY 2014-15 CDBG Public Service Funding at the levels discussed by the Board and\nentered on the spreadsheet, (Listed below as \"SSHRB Rec 2/19\") with the acknowledgment of the value of\nthe services provided by Echo and Eden I&R, and the hope that additional funding will be identified to fully\nsupport these programs.\nM/S Radding/Villareal Unanimous\nCDBG FY\nStaff Rec\nStaff Rec\nSSHRB\n14-15\nW 5%\nwith no\nRec\nAgency\nProgram Name\nRequest\ncut 2/19\ncut 2/19\n2/19\nEmergency Food\nFood Bank\nDistribution\n5000\n5000\n5000\n5000\nBFWC\nMidway Shelter\n70000\n66400\n66400\n66400\nHomeless\nBFWC\nPrevention\n40000\n38000\n40000\n38000\nECHO\nHousing Counseling\n32290\n30625\n32290\n15000\n211 Communication\nEden I&R\nSystem\n20000\n19000\n20000\n10000\nDirect Legal\nFVLC\nServices\n16480\n15600\n16480\n15600\nSenior Housing\nPermanence\nAFS\nProgram\n25711\n0\n0\n25711\nLegal Assistance for\nLAS\nSeniors\n15000\n11000\n13645\n11000\nPublic Services Total\n224481\n185625\n193815\n186711\nThere were no Workgroup Progress Reports Board)Stat Communications, or Oral Communications\nThe meeting was adjourned at 8:35 PM. M)S Williams) Villareal UNANIMOUS\nRespectfully submitted by:\nJim Franz\nSecretary\nB\\PACKETS\\2014Febuary2014)MINUTES I Febuary 2014.doc", "path": "SocialServiceHumanRelationsBoard/2014-02-19.pdf"}