Advocates Cautiously Optimistic on County Homeless Emergency

Melissa Moore, homeless advocate

Alameda County’s emergency declaration to combat the homeless crisis is gaining support among advocacy groups who hope the funds will quickly go to the people who need it most.

The Board of Supervisors on September 19 approved a local state of emergency, unlocking the state and federal funding they hope will speed up the county's Home Together 2026 Community Plan to end homelessness.

“In the last few years, we have invested over $200 million and adopted the five-year Home Together Plan, but the number of people experiencing homelessness continues to rise every year. That is why I asked my colleagues to join me in declaring this state of emergency–to ensure every available resource and tool is available and being used,” District 4 Supervisor and Board President Nate Miley told the Forum.

Alameda County Health Care Services Agency (HCSA) Office of Homeless Care and Coordination (OHCC) was named as the lead agency responsible for managing the funds and is expected to report back to the Board of Supervisors within 60 days.

“We look forward to a robust conversation to be held with a sense of urgency to expand services and bring needed shelter and housing programs to scale,” OHCC Director Kerry Abbot said.

While the plan is expected to be a catalyst for getting the county to pull together with cities and unincorporated committees to coordinate a response, homeless advocate Melissa Moore says she’s hoping the bureaucratic red tape won’t slow down the important work that service providers are trying to accomplish right now.

“In my opinion, the highest priorities are the lack of interim housing like tiny homes or sanctioned encampments and the lack of a safety net for many who suffer from mental health issues,” Moore told the Forum. Moore is the co-founder of East Bay Homebridge Connect and founder of RISE (Rising Into Self Empowerment), two non-profit groups that provide street outreach and support to the unhoused.

For example, when the Fairmont Tiny Homes opened, Moore says, many people did get housing, but several did not because the project did not account for delays in obtaining the housing vouchers, putting some people like Andre Carpiaux back on the streets. 

“It’s been incredibly hard getting housing since I've been out there,” Carpiaux says, adding if housing is not immediately available, he and others would appreciate a safe place to put their tents up along with garbage service, mobile hygiene units, outhouses, and an office on site for medical and housing providers to come in and help.

Moore is also concerned for those struggling with severe mental illness, who are in what she calls "a gray area where they don't quite meet all the criteria for a 72-hour hold yet are a danger to themselves due to being unable to make cognitively sound decisions for their safety and well-being."

Moore and others are calling for more intensive case management and long-term residential treatment centers to address unhoused people with severe behavioral issues.

She’s also calling for retraining law enforcement officers with more human rights knowledge and interaction and not criminalizing the homeless. 

“Once one feels safe from the constant sweeps and police harassment, they can focus on paths to get them moving forward and assimilate back into a productive and proud member of the community they are constantly shunned from. It's a win-win situation for everyone,” Moore says.