EYE ON SJC
Meet the Candidates Vote-by-mail ballots have begun to hit constituents’ mailboxes this week as California’s Primary Election is less than a month away. In an effort to give our readers more insight into the slate of candidates vying for seats in major local elected offices, we’ve given those running an opportunity to respond to some questions related to issues impacting South Orange County. Every district-area candidate seeking office in the State Senate and Assembly, Orange County Board and U.S. House of Representatives was given three questions and asked for 400-word responses to each. Some candidates did not submit responses to our questions. Space for their responses was left blank. Given space limitations, only one or two of the questions per race will be published here. The full slate of the questions and answers can be found at thecapistranodispatch.com. QUESTION 1
| What are your thoughts on the availability of homeless shelter beds in South County? Could more
be done to improve availability? If so, what solutions would you propose as a Board Supervisor to 1) provide more shelter space, and 2) facilitate the development of permanent supportive housing—either locally, by city, or regionally? If not through shelter or housing—permanent supportive, affordable, or otherwise—what alternatives would you support to address the ongoing homelessness crisis? COUNTY BOARD FIFTH DISTRICT CANDIDATES *INCUMBENT
OC Board Supervisor Katrina Foley* I’ve long believed the county’s failure to take responsibility for the regional issue of homelessness has exacerbated the problem. Past county leaders left individual cities to figure out how to fund shelters and services with their scarce general funds, instead of the county using the funding it receives annually for homelessness solutions. The county continues to struggle to assign regular patrols and clear encampments in its flood channels and parks, forcing cities to tackle the issue. Immediately after joining the board, I initiated a first-of-its-kind audit of all county dollars spent on homelessness to assess what is working, cut wasteful spending, and find solutions for our entire region. As the OC Register reported, my April Investigative Hearing on Homelessness made findings of the audit public, which concluded that, “unless the County creates a comprehensive countywide strategy focused on lasting solutions, (we) may be stuck on a hamster wheel: solving the same problems over and over, community by community.” When reelected, I’ll finish crafting the strategic plan with regional metrics and goals to end this crisis, while also building on my previous success of reducing homelessness by converting dilapidated, unsafe motels into permanent supportive housing for veterans and families, and continue funding the clearing of encampments in parks and flood channels. A regional collaborative approach requires public safety, mental health social workers, public health, our faith-based community, and a true city-county partnership.
Former Assemblymember Diane Harkey South OC does not have a comprehensive approach to address homelessness—yet. Solutions will not happen if we wait on Sacramento to act on legislation that is national or statewide that may not be practical for South OC. While we welcome options for temporary shelters, converting motels or other units into permanent shelters wouldn’t be optimal in high-tourist beach areas. We know what works for Orange County, which has built a System of Care and a broad response plan. The OC Housing Finance Trust was formed to identify and secure 2,700 permanent supportive housing units, with six projects underway in SOC that I will shepherd to completion. Additionally, we must expand support for nonprofits such as the Family Assistance Ministries (FAM) that provide temporary and permanent shelters in SOC at present and offer intake assessments for countywide homeless assistance. FAM also operates a food bank in San Clemente and thrift store in Laguna Niguel. FAM will need to relocate their intake and foodbank facility within the next year due to expiration of a leased facility in San Clemente. One housing model is to purchase existing multi-family units through contributions, grants and mortgages, which they retire. They presently own two triplexes and house those with children who need temporary assistance, one family per bedroom with the common area shared. I’ve toured these facilities, and units are in excellent repair, meld into the neighborhood and have on-site supervision. Within 90 days, these families are relocated into rental housing and within a year, families are paying full market rent and back on their feet again. FAM also works to secure permanent housing for mentally ill and disabled and elderly persons. (See: familyassistance.org) Illumination Foundation is a comprehensive resource nonprofit organization that we can and do leverage to assist in SOC. Be Well OC provides mental health assistance and mobile response teams for addiction and mental illness. Working with the cities, I will help secure location(s) that meets the court mandate for our Southern region, ensure the county is available to provide wraparound integrated services for care. I will explore options within our district for a central facility such that the burden on the cities is relieved as much as possible. We should not be subjected to illegal camping in our parks, beaches, alleys, or business locations. We can and will do better to meet the requirements for relocation and supporting our communities.
Newport Beach Councilmember Kevin Muldoon Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, and Laguna Beach have regional shelter beds dedicated to their homeless shelter needs. The County of Orange has an adequate number of homeless shelter beds required to address the needs of the remaining South County cities, but the county’s Yale Navigation Center has temporarily limited their capacity out of health concerns. Lifting those restrictions will immediately increase shelter space and provide sufficient shelter beds for South County.
State Sen. Patricia Bates Cities have the responsibility to determine where housing is allowed in their community. While on the Laguna Niguel City Council, the Board of Supervisors and as your state senator, I have always been an advocate for local control. I will advocate with the county to work with South County cities to look at commercial and industrial land within their jurisdictions that is no longer occupied, and appropriately rezone those sites to build affordable mixed-used housing and emergency housing, ensuring those developments are placed in appropriate areas and have the support of neighboring properties. I will work with our County Planning and Public Works Department to advocate for waiving or lowering the fee structures for projects aimed at providing affordable housing. Accountability is key to determine best practices, and which approaches to ending homelessness have worked. Given the state has spent $17 billion to date and the problem has grown, I support auditing those programs to determine which ones move forward. The Capistrano Dispatch May 13-26, 2022
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