HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemo - Mail Packet - 8/25/2020 - Memorandum From Sue Beck-Ferkiss Re: Covid 19 Response - Non-Congregate Shelter Program
Social Sustainability
222 Laporte Avenue
PO Box 580
Fort Collins, CO 80522
970.221.6758
MEMORANDUM
DATE: August 10, 2020
TO: Mayor Troxell and City Councilmembers
THRU: Darin Atteberry, City Manager
Jacqueline Kozak-Thiel, Chief Sustainability Officer
Beth Sowder, Director of Social Sustainability
Lindsay Ex, Interim Housing Manager
FROM: Sue Beck-Ferkiss, Social Policy & Housing Program Manager
RE: COVID - 19 Response: Non-congregate Shelter Program
Purpose: The purpose of this memo is to provide Council with a status report on the Non-
congregate Shelter (NCS) Program that City Council asked staff to co-create together with
many community partners as a follow up to the closure of the temporary auxiliary shelter at
Northside Aztlan Community Center.
Bottom line:This COVID-19 response is to provide individual shelter rooms and support to
persons experiencing homelessness (PEH) at high risk for severe complications if they contract
the virus due to age (65 and up) and/or underlying medical conditions. The NCS program
started August 3 and is planned to run through October. Catholic Charities is the lead on-site
operator and many community partners will support the shelter operation. The program is
designed for 90 days. Staff will keep Council updated through periodic status reports during the
operation of the shelter.
NCS Program Highlights
Program Start-up:
• This is not a public shelter and is a COVID specific emergency response to protect those
most vulnerable. People must be referred to the program from the City’s community
partners’ collective made up of representatives from Homeward Alliance, the Health
District of Northern Larimer County, Homeward 2020, and Catholic Charities, among
others. Participants will have an orientation at Catholic Charities before going to the NCS
location. People cannot access these shelter services by going to the location directly.
• Starting the week of August 3, the operator, Catholic Charities, started onboarding 1- 2
people a day into the program, typically one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
This will continue in month one of the shelter operation until 25 rooms are occupied. As
needed, additional rooms will be added in month two up to a maximum of 50.
• Individual rooms allowing high risk people to quarantine is a best practice recommended
by the Center for Disease Control for this population of PEH. At least 14 other Colorado
jurisdictions have offered some type of NCS.
• Contracts in place: The City has agreements with a hotel, a security company, Catholic
Charities as the on-site operator, and the Food Bank for Larimer County for the major
components of the program.
• City Council has appropriated $420,000 for the program with federal reimbursement
sought as a COVID-19 response. Pre-approval from the State allows the City to seek
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FEMA reimbursement for 75% of associated costs if the City choses to pursue that
funding.
• The Sister Mary Alice Murphy Center for Hope (Murphy Center) is the best referral for
PEH that need services and is also the best place to send people wanting to be
considered for this program.
Timeline
• 90-day program: Designed for 90 days and starting in August, this shelter option can be
in place until the end of October. This plan syncs well with Seasonal Overflow Shelter
which usually begins on November 1.
• Exit strategy under construction: While this program is a health response, housing
navigation and case management will be supported by having PEH at a known location.
Homeward 2020 is leading a housing surge to place as many people into housing as
possible which could reduce the number of people requiring shelter this winter. Staff is
working with the Operator with input from the community partners’ collective on a written
exit strategy which should be accomplished by mid-September at the latest and
participants will be informed that this program is only approved for 90 days and could
end at that time even if the pandemic continues.
o Placement into permanent housing is the best outcome for program participants.
o Bridge or interim housing may be needed if timing of housing availability does not
match the closing of the NCS. For instance, Mason Place is a supportive housing
development currently under construction that may be a good fit for some of the
NCS participants, but it is not scheduled to open until December. Options are
currently being designed for how to house people during that gap in
programming.
o Exiting to a large congregate shelter that allows for physical distancing is also a
possibility.
o Program can be extended if needed depending on funding and COVID-19
concerns. While the design is for 90 days, the situation requires flexibility to
respond to uncertainty, such as a State-wide Stay-at-Home Order.
Leverage Partnerships
• In addition to Catholic Charities on-site services which will include daily wellness and
symptom checks, community partners will be supporting the program by providing case
management, housing navigation, and limited health services for example.
• The housing surge plan led by Homeward 2020 and facilitated by the Corporation of
Supportive Housing is based on a model of matching assets to needs and includes
strategy and asset mapping. This process will identify community assets such as
housing choice vouchers provided through Housing Catalyst and others and pair them
with appropriate PEH to move them into housing.
• Housing Providers and landlord engagement strategies will be used to locate available
housing units.
• Northern Colorado Continuum of Care will participate in this regional housing work too.
Next Steps & Council Updates
• City Staff will have weekly meetings with Catholic Charities as the lead operator.
• The community partners’ collective will have weekly check-ins and referral meetings.
• Staff will provide periodic status reports during the shelter operation and a summary
report when the program is completed.
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