Press Release Archives - Bay Area Community Services (BACS)

Media Advisory: BACS Acquires Former Retirement Center Complex to Transform Systems of Care and Address the Behavioral Health and Homelessness Crises

May 5, 2023

Hayward, California, May 2023 – BACS announced today that it has acquired the St. Regis, a 4.13-acre former retirement facility in Hayward, California, which will become a unique, comprehensive residential and community campus for behavioral health and homelessness services, with a special focus on developing services to meet the additional physical healthcare needs for older adults and other community members with medical fragilities. BACS’ St. Regis will have more than 200 residential beds for permanent supportive housing and short-term recuperative care for individuals exiting the hospital system. Other services will include an on-site medical clinic, and short- and mid- term substance use and behavioral health treatment services in BACS’ signature wellness-based models.

In Alameda County, as in many other communities, the needs for help with behavioral health challenges, homelessness, and substance use far exceed the available resources to meet these community needs. Existing resources are at capacity, and community members instead end up getting disjointed, expensive care at the jail, emergency department, psychiatric care facility, or inpatient hospital. These institutional settings take people further from stability and health in the community, and create repetitive cycles without long-term recovery. The St. Regis will address these urgent gaps, breaking barriers between the behavioral health and homelessness systems of care to interrupt these cycles.

“The St. Regis project is not just about transforming a former retirement center, it’s about transforming the way we think about and provide integrated behavioral health and homelessness services. We refuse to accept the status quo, where thousands of people are left without the care and support they need to live healthy, fulfilling lives,” says Jamie Almanza, MBA, CEO of BACS. “At BACS, we are leading a revolution in community mental health and housing, and the St. Regis is just the beginning. We want to create a seamless experience for those seeking help, and are currently building the future where this is possible.”

This groundbreaking project is made possible by historic state investments in behavioral health and supportive housing infrastructure, including $19.4 million from the California Department of Social Services’ Community Care Expansion Program (CCE) with additional local support from Alameda County Measure A-1 funds, the City of Hayward, and the Eden Health District. BACS will be providing services in partnership with the Alameda County Health Care Services Agency Office of Homeless Care and Coordination and Behavioral Health departments. Site rehabilitation is already underway, and BACS continues to work with local and state officials to access the additional resources needed to make the St. Regis a true beacon of hope and healing for our community.

“We believe that housing is health care and homelessness not only exacerbates, it creates more health problems that impact mental wellbeing,” says Colleen Chawla, Health Care Services Agency Director. “Today’s announcement is another important milestone in the County’s goal to end homelessness, and vision for all residents in Alameda County to live healthy and fulfilling lives, supported by services that surround and support individuals struggling with physical and behavioral health problems. We are proud to be a part of the collective effort to house Alameda County’s most vulnerable residents and thank BACS for leadership with the St. Regis.”

“Hayward is beyond excited to welcome this much-needed resource to the community. St. Regis will fill a missing gap in the system of care by providing a campus of services designed to wholistically serve those who are experiencing homelessness, mental health, and substance use disorders. This is a win for the system of care, the community, and the region, and we hope this serves as a model for other communities to replicate,” says Hayward Mayor Mark Salinas.

The St. Regis project is still in development while the site undergoes rehabilitation to be a state-of-the-art community mental health, recuperative care, and supportive housing site, representing a critical and innovative step towards ensuring that thousands of individuals in the County receive the mental health treatment and supportive housing they deserve. By investing in housing justice and behavioral health services, the St. Regis project is an important milestone in addressing the homelessness crisis and advancing equity in our community.

About Bay Area Community Services

Bay Area Community Services (BACS) breaks the mental health, housing, and community barriers that hold people back. BACS’ mission is to uplift under-served individuals and their families by doing “whatever it takes.” BACS helps people experiencing homelessness, housing insecurity, or behavioral health challenges, while balancing other complications like health needs, substance use, generational trauma, incarceration, poverty, and more. Since its founding in 1953, BACS has steadily grown throughout Northern and Central California, integrating nearly seven decades of behavioral health expertise with our Housing First philosophy to meet the rising needs of communities. To support the St. Regis’ transformation or BACS’ behavioral health and housing solutions, visit www.bayareacs.org/donate

About Alameda County Health Care Services Agency

The Health Care Services Agency (HCSA) is the local health jurisdiction (LHJ) for Alameda County, the seventh most diverse county in the nation. With a total area of more than 800 square miles and a population of 1.5 million residents, Alameda County encompasses urban, suburban, and rural geographic areas as well as a large unincorporated area, for which County agencies have jurisdictional responsibility. HCSA holds responsibility for various state and federal health mandates operated through the departments of Behavioral Health, Environmental Health, Office of the Agency Director, and Public Health. HCSA programs include Emergency Medical Services, the Office of Homeless Care and Coordination, the Center for Healthy Schools and Communities, and Health Program of Alameda County providing affordable health care to uninsured people living in Alameda County. HCSA serves as the County’s health authority which includes response to the COVID-19 pandemic under the direction of the County Health Officer. HCSA operates within the largest annual budget in the County of $1.08B and employs more than 1,800 people.

Media Advisory: Keep Oakland Housed Announces First Executive Director

October 13, 2022

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, October 13th – Keep Oakland Housed launches next phase of homelessness prevention in Oakland by announcing its first Executive Director, Logan McDonnell.

Keep Oakland Housed (KOH) was founded in 2018 as a pilot program to prevent homelessness before it starts. KOH uses a data-based approach with an equity lens to provide targeted emergency financial assistance, legal support, and supportive services.

New Executive Director Logan McDonnell (pictured right) is a long-time housing justice advocate, bringing community organizing, direct homelessness services, and fundraising experience to this new role. At BACS, he oversees operations for multiple homelessness prevention programs as well as many permanent supportive housing efforts in Alameda County. He currently sits on the boards of Success Centers, as well Community Forward SF. He is a mentor in the OK program of Oakland, where they empower black boys to transform their community through mentorship. Logan is a proud graduate of Florida A&M, a historically black college (HBCU) in Tallahassee, FL and a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

“Families, black families in particular, that have been in Oakland for generations are being pushed out of town at an alarming rate due to targeted and unprecedented hikes in rent and layers of generational inequity. It shouldn’t be normalized; it should be condemned,” said Logan McDonnell, new Executive Director of Keep Oakland Housed. Homelessness and housing is an equity issue, a health and safety issue, and an issue of our humanity”

Oakland faces a housing affordability, displacement, and homelessness crisis. Between 2011 and 2017, apartment rents increased 70% while household incomes increased only modestly and incomes for Black Oaklanders decreased 7%. This puts tremendous pressure on the community and increases the level of housing insecurity, especially for Oaklanders who are black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) and low-income families. In 2018, the California Reinvestment Coalition called Oakland “ground zero for gentrification and displacement in the Bay Area.” The forces have been especially devastating for Oakland’s Black/African American population with Oakland losing 30% of its Black/African American population between 2000-2017.

Developing and implementing a pathbreaking model that specifically prioritizes those most hit hard by these forces and on the verge of homelessness, Keep Oakland Housed has distributed more that $40 million to date using this innovative, targeted model and these impacts have not gone unnoticed. In 2022, The Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Department Secretary, Marcia Fudge, presented KOH with the “2022 Secretary’s Award for Public-Philanthropic Partnerships – Housing and Community Development in Action.” The awards recognize the partnership and its impact as a community strategy to increase the quality of life for low- and moderate-income residents across all American geographies – urban, suburban, and rural. KOH was one of only seven awardees in America. Past and current partners include San Francisco Foundation, Crankstart, City of Oakland, Kaiser, All Home and East Bay Community Law Center.

Today, as the pandemic and its protracted impacts are becoming endemic, the Keep Oakland Housed collaborative is again reimagining this next phase of the work to stem the tide of the forces unhousing and displacing Oaklanders. When COVID started, there was an infusion of federal investments that critically prevented homelessness for thousands of people who were suddenly without income. These funds have been spent down, and this is a critical time for the Oakland community to support Keep Oakland Housed ongoing, as inflation impacts the town, potential recession looms, and the cost of living continues to rise. Keep Oakland Housed is a nimble response to Oaklanders who have a lease and are on the verge of losing that stability, and to Oaklanders who do not have a lease and are at the “front door” of homelessness. Keep Oakland Housed is rooted in innovation, and we will innovate to provide a spectrum of homelessness prevention resources, responsive to the needs of the community. To support this critical work please visit keepoaklandhoused.org and click the donate button.

About Bay Area Community Services

Bay Area Community Services (BACS) breaks the mental health, housing, and community barriers that hold people back. BACS’ mission is to uplift under-served individuals and their families by doing “whatever it takes.” BACS helps people experiencing homelessness, housing insecurity, or behavioral health challenges, while balancing other complications like health needs, substance use, generational trauma, incarceration, poverty, and more. Since its founding in 1953, BACS has steadily grown throughout Northern and Central California, integrating nearly seven decades of behavioral health expertise with our Housing First philosophy to meet the rising needs of communities. BACS is the lead agency of the Keep Oakland Housed coalition.

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Media Advisory: Pets And Their Families Getting Help On The Way To Housing

December 14, 2021

Two Local Non-Profits Team Up to Promote Health & Joy for Homeless Families with Pets

SALINAS, CA, December 2021 – A pet is family, no matter where you live – including for families experiencing homelessness. Today, Bay Area Community Services (BACS) and BirchBark Foundation (BBF) announced a new partnership to provide veterinary care, support services, and supplies to the pets of people on their way from homelessness to housing at the SHARE Center.

This pilot program honors the human-animal bond, while doing “whatever it takes” to uplift local unhoused families and help them stabilize. This bond is just as critical, if not more so, to people without stable housing. Thanks to this partnership, dogs, cats, and other pets are getting the love and care they need so that they, in turn, can provide support and stability to their human families.

The SHARE Center, located in Salinas, is a signature BACS “housing fast” program. BACS’ Housing Fast Programs fill the gap between homelessness and housing by getting people off the streets and into temporary housing.

“Everybody deserves health and housing,” said Nora Daly, BACS development director, “and in order for BACS to create housing opportunities that last, we take into account the whole person, the whole family structure – including pets. Pets can help make us happier, safer, and less isolated. This program is already bringing joy.”

With a mission of protecting and honoring the human animal bond, BirchBark brings its three programs to the pet families of SHARE, and has customized additional services through collaboration with Peace of Mind Dog Rescue and SPCA Monterey County. On a daily basis, BBF provides financial assistance for life-compromising animal crises, pet loss and grief support counseling, and a robust education program to empower people to be the best caregivers of their furry animal family members.

“We know that the bond with our animals can be one of the most important relationships in our lives. BirchBark is thrilled to provide all three of our programs to SHARE families, and also take it a step further to fund animal wellness exams upon arrival at SHARE to ensure a pet and their family are getting the best start to success possible. No matter the circumstances in someone’s life, animals are family and need to be protected as such. We want to help empower the pet families of SHARE on their journey to permanent housing,” stated Michelle Frampton, BBF executive director.

The partnership kicked off today with at event at the SHARE Center, building a “tree of hope” decorated with words of love and meaning made by people impacted by their pets and all people who have needed hope during challenging times. Peace of Mind Dog Rescue and SPCA Monterey County also joined the event to honor the partnership and the supports they will offer such as kennel and behavior training, volunteers doing veterinary appointment transport, and the joint veterinary care with BBF through Peace of Mind Dog Rescue’s Harry and Jaynne Boand Clinic.

Would you give up your beloved pet if you lost your housing, especially if you thought you would be able to get new housing soon? As of the most recent Monterey County Point in Time Count, in 2019, 23%[1] of community members without housing qualified as “chronically homeless[2]” – meaning that for 77%, they are “between homes” and the situation is more temporary. Pets provide companionship, mental health benefits, and can be a safety measure for people who are living on the streets.

Between five and ten percent of unhoused community members have pets, and too often, families including pets are discriminated against, judged, and excluded because of their animal companions. The SHARE Center is extremely low barrier, meaning clients can come with their pets, partners, or families, and mental health challenges / low income / other complex needs are not a barrier to coming indoors. Once a person moves in to the SHARE Center, we hold a determined focus on getting people housed, while breaking down the other barriers that hold people back by providing mental health support, employment / benefits support, and more. Our Housing Navigators work with clients on an individualized basis to help clients end their own cycle of being unhoused and help them find permanent, sustainable housing. Our team will then work with them for 6 months afterwards to ensure they remain stably housed.

The SHARE Center is a beautiful and spacious location, including a reception, waiting room, staff spaces, health clinic, counseling offices, library, a commercial kitchen, a multipurpose room, pet kennels, outdoor dining area, children’s play areas, and bedrooms, and private family spaces, with space for 125 people. There are currently 13 pets on-site.

About Bay Area Community Services

About BirchBark Foundation

BirchBark Foundation’s mission is to protect and honor the human-animal bond by providing financial assistance to vulnerable families faced with unaffordable medical expenses to save the life of a pet and with support of all families through education and pet loss and grief counseling programs. BirchBark serves as a unique piece of the safety net in Monterey, Santa Cruz, and San Benito Counties by acknowledging the multi-layered importance of relationships with pets. The organization strives to provide stability to animals, their humans, and the veterinary professionals who make up the teams of their 30 veterinary partners on the Central Coast.

To learn more, go to www.birchbarkfoundation.org

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[1] https://www.co.monterey.ca.us/home/showdocument?id=81207

[2] Defined as an individual with one or more disabling conditions or a family with a head of household with a disabling condition who: » Has been continuously homeless for 1 year or more and/or; » Has experienced 4 or more episodes of homelessness within the past 3 years.

Media Advisory: Fremont Housing Navigation Center Welcomes First Residents

September 28, 2020

Fremont, CA, September 2020 – Bay Area Community Services (BACS) today announced that the first residents of its new Fremont Housing Navigation Center (HNC) moved out of homelessness and into the program. The HNC, located near Fremont City Hall, is a pivotal partnership between the City of Fremont and BACS to address the city’s homelessness crisis by providing unhoused community members with rapid re-housing services and a path to securing permanent housing.

The HNC model acts as a clean, safe, calm, and flexible environment that enables unhoused community members to rebuild their lives and with a supported and determined focus on finding stable, permanent housing. The program was designed for 45 people at a time, which has been temporarily limited to a reduced 25 participants in order to comply with the best practices for COVID-19 safety while serving as many people as possible. Once the pandemic ends and restrictions are lifted, BACS intends to open the program at full capacity.

Today, the first cohort of people moved in to the HNC. One HNC resident has been homeless 5 years and has been living their car until today. BACS will continue to move in residents in small groups to maximize COVID-19 safety, and anticipates reaching capacity next week.

“BACS is very honored to rapidly open its door to the Fremont Community and to do so with care, courage, and special attention paid to keep our community members, staff, and all of us safe during COVID,” said Jamie Almanza, MBA, CEO of BACS. “The phased opening took in to account locating and intensively outreaching to individuals and inviting them to come inside. I am so appreciative to the Mayor, City Council, City Employees, Community Based Organizations – everyone – for this tremendous milestone in the City and neighboring Cities history.”

The Program Model

This is a “low-barrier” shelter, meaning there are no curfews, people do not have to be sober to stay there, they can bring their pets, and there is storage for accumulated belongings. BACS seeks to support individuals in building and maintaining their independence, in a nurturing environment. Unlike the “shelter” model, people can sleep as long as they like, and there are no strict times people have to be on or off site. There are casual places to sit, and plants, trees, and murals. There are washers and dryers, bathrooms with showers, and a common room with a mini-kitchen.

We envision a world where all people are healthy, safe, and engaged in community wellness, with access to quality housing. When an individual moves in, our determined focus is on finding housing, and the entire team creates a culture of assuming that housing will be found. While participants are getting back on their feet, finding sustainable jobs, getting mental and physical healthcare supports, connecting with benefits, and re-adjusting to living inside, BACS’ Housing Specialists work on housing solutions in the community.

Meeting the Rising Need in Fremont

Homelessness is a humanitarian crisis that will not improve without innovative approaches. The City of Fremont, with historic leadership from Mayor Lily Mei and the Fremont City Council, has committed to a comprehensive and innovative plan to significantly reduce homelessness within the community, based in local models and data that have proven effectiveness. The City of Fremont’s Human Services Department has closely coordinated with the Fremont Police Department, BACS, the City of Berkeley, volunteers across Fremont, and community supporters to ensure the program is operational and on schedule.

According to the annual Alameda County Point-in-Time Count & Survey from 2019, homelessness in Fremont rose 27% from 2017 to 2019, and determined that 485 of the 608 homeless participants were unsheltered. Currently, in Alameda County, for every homeless person who finds permanent housing three more individuals are becoming unhoused. Homelessness will only end with mobilization from local governments, and the City of Fremont is showing great leadership in tackling homelessness through sustainable solutions.

Funding Sources

The City projects a total of $9.47 million in HNC funding from state, county, and City-led programs to run the Center for the first three years. Beyond 2023, the City will evaluate the program to further extend the operation for additional years, contingent upon future funding opportunities. A breakdown of total funding for the HNC includes: $1.47 million from Homeless Emergency Aid Program (HEAP); $100,000 from California Emergency Solution and Housing (CESH); up to $1.76 million from the Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) Program; $1.93 million in Permanent Local Housing Allocation (PLHA) authorized by the Building Homes and Jobs Act (SB2, 2017); $3.24 million in City funds from the unspent portion of the one-time homeless General Fund dollars appropriated by the City Council in FY 2017/18, as well as the unallocated balance in the City-Funded Affordable Housing Fund; $320,000 annually from the Alameda County Social Services Agency; and $31,000 from community contributions. This project was approved unanimously by the City Council in 2019.

About Bay Area Community Services

Since its founding in 1953, BACS has become a local leader in homelessness prevention programs, facing the housing crisis head on through rapid re-housing, targeted outreach for people experiencing homelessness and support navigating the web of services, purchasing housing across the Bay Area to house people who would otherwise be homeless, and much more. BACS also provides recovery-oriented behavioral health services. To learn more, go to www.bayareacs.org

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Media Advisory: Project Homekey BACS

September 23, 2020

PROJECT RECLAMATION: PROJECT HOMEKEY IN OAKLAND

California, Oakland, and BACS – Major Investment in Permanent Housing for Oaklanders

OAKLAND, CA, September 2020 – Bay Area Community Services (BACS)’ Project Reclamation has been awarded $10 million to buy single-family homes in Oakland as part of the State of California’s Project Homekey, creating permanent housing for community members with complex needs who are experiencing homelessness.

On September 21, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom announced the second round of Project Homekey funding awards, a major investment from the State of California. Project Homekey is a capital infusion to purchase motels and provide for permanent supports of housing for homeless individuals.

BACS’ Project Reclamation plans to develop 100 units at 20 scattered sites throughout Oakland for families and individuals. Project Reclamation seeks to preserve the Oakland community by reclaiming neighborhoods for community benefit. BACS has 67 years of history in Oakland, so we identify and prioritize neighborhoods with strong opportunities for revitalization, preventing gentrification that displaces long-term community members.

Project Reclamation is a grassroots Co-Op Living model aimed to eliminate barriers to access deeply affordable permanent housing with supportive services for homeless individuals. The model is highly efficient in that it does not require a lifetime operating subsidy because the asset is owned and the rental income and some services revenue covers all operating expenses over time.

“This model is a game-changer for how our community will solve homelessness,” said BACS CEO Jamie Almanza. “It is innovative, simple, and cost-efficient. And at the heart of this model is that it takes a stand at fighting gentrification – at reclaiming our communities. BACS, as a non-profit, holds assets in the community trust, for the people. These homes – and the individuals that hold the keys – are for the community, of the community, and in the community. I am so proud to live in a State and a community where the public leaders see the strength of this model, as it is unique and could have easily been passed over. Thank you for your leadership.”

Project Homekey, administered by California Housing & Community Development department, is the state’s $600 million program for purchasing and rehabilitating housing, including hotels, motels, vacant apartment buildings and other properties, converting them into permanent, long-term housing for people experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness. Project Homekey builds on the effective crisis response of Project Roomkey, which brought unhoused people rapidly off the streets and inside in an unprecedented – never been done – way. BACS stepped up to run three large Project Roomkey hotels throughout the Bay Area.

BACS is honored to work with the City of Oakland, the Oakland City Council, Mayor Libby Schaaf, and Oakland Housing and Community Development Department leadership on this innovative, neighborhood-oriented approach to ending homelessness.

Housing Co-Ops: Supported Independent Living

Bay Area Community Services (BACS) believes that homelessness is one of the most pressing problems of our time – but that it can be solved through community investment in innovative solutions.

Some affordable housing projects are taking up to 10 years before move in, & can cost up to $600,000 per studio apartment built. We cannot afford to wait 10 years. We buy homes where the entirety of a six-bedroom house costs less than one newly built affordable housing studio, and are ready to move people in within 30 days – not 10 years

This program model is deeply rooted in the community. BACS has acquired, owned, operated, and property managed small-site, scattered, Co-Op Living properties for individuals experiencing homelessness since 1973. Our vision is one of preservation, anti-gentrification, system coordination, and one that still believes firmly that there are pathways to end homelessness if there is an openness to break the frame of requiring rigid and conservative, one-way lifetime strategies in favor of non-traditional, true community-driven solutions like the BACS Co-Living model.

At BACS’ Supported Independent Living Co-Op sites, residents are people who would otherwise be homeless due to mental health complications and other barriers. Rather than living on the streets or being institutionalized, which is harmful for the individual and our community, participants get to live safely and healthily in the community of their choice.

Each resident is paired with a Care Coordinator who helps them build independent living skills through job support, benefits assistance, mental health support, financial assistance, job support, group activities, and money management. Residents learn skills by sharing responsibilities for cleaning, paying bills, and running their household.

Every single person in a BACS house has their own bedroom, door, and key. Individuals share communal areas such as kitchen and bathrooms. BACS does not believe in individuals crammed in shared bedrooms or in bunkbeds. Our housing is embedded in the community, and allows clients to share in cooking & other house activities while still having their own bedroom, preventing isolation. Tenants hold long term leases, and because BACS in the landlord, we are more attune to typical behavioral issues that tend to cause them to be evicted and return to homelessness.

About Bay Area Community Services

Bay Area Community Services (BACS) provides innovative behavioral health and housing services for teens, adults, older adults, and their families across the Bay Area. BACS’ mission is to uplift under-served community members and their families by doing whatever it takes. Since its founding in 1953, BACS has become a local leader in homelessness prevention programs, facing the housing crisis head on through rapid re-housing, targeted outreach for people experiencing homelessness and support navigating the web of services, purchasing housing across the Bay Area to house people who would otherwise be homeless, and much more. BACS also provides recovery-oriented behavioral health services. To learn more, go to www.bayareacs.org

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Media Advisory: BACS Acquires Former Retirement Center Complex to Transform Systems of Care and Address the Behavioral Health and Homelessness Crises

Media Advisory: Keep Oakland Housed Announces First Executive Director

Media Advisory: Pets And Their Families Getting Help On The Way To Housing

Two Local Non-Profits Team Up to Promote Health & Joy for Homeless Families with Pets

About Bay Area Community Services

About BirchBark Foundation

Media Advisory: Fremont Housing Navigation Center Welcomes First Residents

Media Advisory: Project Homekey BACS

PROJECT RECLAMATION: PROJECT HOMEKEY IN OAKLAND

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