$2M FOR CARLSBAD HOMELESS SHELTER

County grant will help city expand its only facility to house women, children

Carlsbad accepted a $2 million county grant this week to expand La Posada de Guadalupe, the city’s only homeless shelter, as part of a long-term plan to help the area’s increasing unsheltered population.

The number of homeless people appears to be growing throughout the county, despite efforts by agencies and nonprofits to move them into temporary and long-term homes. A Jan. 31 count in downtown San Diego found about 1,900, an increase of 100 from one month earlier.

“Regionally, for every 10 people who are housed, 13 become homeless,” said Greg Anglea, CEO of Interfaith Community Services, a nonprofit that helps people in need across the county find food, housing and other assistance.

“We do not have a problem housing people,” Anglea said at Tuesday’s Carlsbad City Council meeting. “We have a problem preventing people from becoming homeless.”

Another widely used indicator is the annual one-day, point-in-time count done in January by the Regional Task Force on Homelessness. This year’s numbers will be unavailable for a few more months, but the 2022 count for Carlsbad was 118, down by 20 percent from 148 in 2020. No count was done in 2021 because of the pandemic.

Anglea and others who spoke at the City Council meeting praised Carlsbad for adopting an updated homeless action plan including the La Posada expansion.

La Posada opened in 1992 to provide shelter for migrant farmworkers, many of whom were sleeping in the brush around Agua Hedionda Lagoon. The city contributed $200,000 to help volunteer residents and the Catholic Charities Diocese of San Diego set up facilities in temporary buildings near the police and fire headquarters east of El Camino Real and north of Faraday Avenue.

The shelter now occupies a permanent, mission-style building

with 50 beds for homeless men and 50 beds prioritized for farmworkers. The county’s $2 million will be used to add a second floor with 30 to 50 beds for women and children. Construction is expected to start later this year.

The $2 million accepted Tuesday is part of $10 million San Diego County awarded in 2022 for regional efforts to reduce homelessness.

Also Tuesday, Carlsbad updated the homelessness action plan originally approved in 2017. In 2019, the

city created a Housing and Homeless Services Department, and in 2022 the City Council adopted a five-year strategic plan to address the issue.

The city placed 62 people in permanent housing, 110 people in temporary shelters and had 749 one-time contacts with homeless individuals during the fiscal year that ended June 30, said Chris Schilling, senior program manager for homeless services.

While most speakers praised the plan, one Carlsbad resident said there was “nothing innovative” in it and that more should be done for people with addictions.

“We need to address the elephant in the room,” said Teri Jacobs. “Yes, we need housing, but we have addiction problems.”

And though the four members on the council voted unanimously to approve the updated homelessness plan, Councilmember Melanie Burkholder expressed concerns about the costs.

Activities in the plan are listed for about $3.5 million in the city’s annual budget. Most of that money is from the general fund, with some from the city’s separate housing trust fund and some from federal community development

block grant money.

“It is a robust program,” Burkholder said, but by her calculations it cost the city at least $66,000 for each of the 62 people placed in permanent housing, or $77,000 each if city staff time is included, and more for about 50 camp

cleanups that were done.

“It’s just a lot of money, is my point,” she said.

Others said the money is well spent.

“I’m really pleased with what we are doing,” said Councilmember Teresa Acosta. “Yes, there’s a large cost to it, but if you can save somebody, get them off the street before they self-destruct, then it’s worth it.”

Mayor Keith Blackburn said many residents have told him they’ve seen “a huge improvement” as a result of the city’s efforts.