Homelessness fight gets boost from HUD

Housing for homeless people in San Francisco got a boost Thursday when the federal government announced it is giving the city $9 million more than it did last year as part of its annual funding for homeless programs around the nation.

In all, San Francisco won $41.5 million in homelessness grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, more than any other California county except Los Angeles ($109.4 million).

The grants are awarded every January and represent the single biggest disbursement of funding for homelessness each year from the federal government.

The funding includes $2.5 million worth of housing initiatives on Treasure Island, and $6 million for supportive housing in four rehabilitated residential hotels.

The grants are a small part of the $300 million San Francisco spends on homelessness every year. But that small part is key for expanding programs that provide actual roofs, acting Mayor London Breed said in a statement, adding: “We can’t do it alone.”

Jeff Kositsky, director of the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing, said the infusion of money made him “very pleased” and that the vast majority of the new cash will go toward “permanent supportive housing and rapid rehousing.”

This year’s allotments across the nation from HUD amounted to $2 billion, slightly more than last year. Programs in Alameda County got the second biggest amount in the Bay Area, at $35 million. Santa Clara County will receive $22 million.