The city of La Mesa has agreed to a one-year contract with the Los Angeles-based nonprofit People Assisting The Homeless (PATH) to reach more individuals living on the street.
The City Council earlier this month unanimously approved just over $260,000 in Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act funds to be used for responding to community needs during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The money will go toward paying for the equivalent of 2 1/2 PATH employees tasked with helping the city’s homeless population find housing, gain access to services and connect to resources.
The funding comes on the heels of an August report from La Mesa’s Citizen Task Force on Homelessness and the City Council’s recent approval of a project called HOME — Homeless Outreach Mobile Engagement — modeled on a similar program that has been successful in Oregon for more than three decades.
Among other parts of its Aug. 11 recommendations to the City Council, the task force asked the city to seek out more outreach, prevention/diversion and coordination to address the issue of homelessness in La Mesa and East County.
The outreach part of the report directed the city to provide access to housing navigation as well as mental health and other services through service providers.
Bonnie Baranoff, a member of the task force, said she is “super excited” about the contract with PATH, which is no stranger to La Mesa and noted that the city has previously worked with PATH, paying for its efforts with Homeless Emergency Aid Program funds that come from the state and are doled out by the county.
“PATH is already involved in La Mesa with an outreach worker in Mike Judd,” she said. “They have a good working relationship with the city. PATH is also helping out in Santee and doing a fabulous job engaging with people.”
Baranoff said she understood that PATH had been able to find housing for 40 homeless individuals in La Mesa.
“PATH is well-established and well-positioned to be part of what the city is trying to do with HOME,” she said.
PATH’s journey in the first phase of the city’s HOME program will include providing two full-time contract employees.
One person will specialize in outreach and the other PATH worker will be a clinical outreach specialist who “will have a master’s degree in human behavior to provide immediate counseling in the field before referring clients to additional support, if appropriate,” according to a report from the city’s Community Development department.
The city said the PATH team’s approach will be “field-intensive and person-centered, using persistent and frequent engagement to connect with unsheltered individuals.”
The team will provide homeless residents in La Mesa with full access to eligible services at Connections Housing, PATH’s integrated residential and service community in downtown San Diego. Services there include on-site health clinic operated by Family Health Centers of San Diego, behavioral health services offered by Alvarado Parkway Institute and legal assistance by Legal Aid.
PATH will also connect the city’s homeless residents to other needed services and resources throughout La Mesa including medical services, mental healthcare and substance use treatment. The outreach specialist and clinical outreach specialist will help facilitate transportation for services and care.
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