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SLO council gives CAPSLO $250,000 for homeless center

May 21, 2014

capsloBy JOSH FRIEDMAN

The San Luis Obispo City Council awarded the Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo (CAPSLO) $250,000 Tuesday to use for the development and construction of a new homeless services center.

The council had previously budgeted the money to aid CAPSLO in its bid to purchase a Prado Road property on which to build the homeless center. But, CAPSLO recently struck a deal with the San Luis Obispo Regional Transit Agency, with which it is jointly purchasing the property.

On Tuesday, the council reallocated the funds toward construction of the homeless services center. CAPSLO is also requesting $500,000 from the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors to use toward building the facility.

Prior to Tuesday’s meeting, Councilman Dan Carpenter wrote a CalCoastNews opinion piece stating that the city should direct funds toward immediately housing people rather than toward building a holding pen for the homeless. Councilman John Ashbaugh, a CAPSLO board member, responded by co-authoring a letter published by the Tribune saying CAPSLO already has a housing first policy.

Carpenter defended his position Tuesday, saying the city should start building permanent housing and that many homeless people would rather live in a car or on the streets than in a shelter. Carpenter cast the lone dissenting vote against the reallocation of funds.

Ashbaugh said the existing San Luis Obispo homeless shelter is filled to capacity and the new one would be properly sized and well managed.

“It’s a very, very exciting prospect,” Ashbaugh said.


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For those who keep the BS flowing about the homeless coming in droves to SLO bringing with them a crime wave:


DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES, San Luis Obispo County – Homeless Count Data for 2013


Key Findings:


• The population in San Luis Obispo County of those who meet the HUD definition of homeless has INCREASED SLIGHTLY (3%) since 2011 (emph. mine). (in those two years they counted approximately 42 more homeless HUMAN BEINGS. Damn that Oprah!)


• The MAJORITY of homeless persons are from THIS AREA (emph. mine).


• A RELATIVELY SMALL number of people have had frequent or lengthy interactions with the criminal justice system. Data from local law enforcement suggests that a small number of individuals have been arrested a high number of times for crimes related to addiction disorders (emph. mine).


Now, please continue in your delusional heads buried in the sand approach to accomplishing nothing for these HUMAN BEINGS. And as long as YOU approach this HUMAN condition with the apathetic marginalizing lies you seem stuck on, all you’ll get is what you deserve, more of CAPSLO.


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GBG,

WE are responding to what will happen once they build the new 100 bed facility. Your stats don;t reflect what is to come!

CAPSLO demands the homeless turn over their SS$ with the promise of permanent housing. the question is, WHY are they still homeless? Where is he housing they promised? Instead they plan to build another shelter for temp housing…that is the point.


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BTW, the one way bus tickets are real. Have an ex brother inlaw who is a cop.


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LAH,


The one thing I am not is a psychic, nor do I have access to the crystal ball you and others seem to have unfettered access to. So, I’ll deal with real numbers and actual events and I’ll let the rest of you deal with the fortune telling .


I don’t condone CAPSLO, not for one minute! I object to it’s current form of “case management” and it’s future obvious “cherry picking” of those they will serve and those they won’t. That being said, I don’t respect a bunch of armchair quarterbacks screamin’ from the sidelines to “FIX IT” while not willing to get into the game to help!


You get what you participate in or what you ignore, that’s your choice. But when you choose to ignore then focus your anger on those HUMAN BEINGS who are supposed to be served I’ll let you know just how wrong I think you are.


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Somewhat of a straw man argument, at least in the sense that I think you’re picking the worst argument being made and responding to it. A lot of other solutions have been offered, but these people on the council, except for Carpenter, are NOT LISTENING. They have total and complete tunnel vision on this.


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My response has to do with those that sit by, do nothing, don’t get involved, demand others to act and then when things don’t go as they expect they get angry with those who are supposed to be served. The anger is often based on knee jerk reactions rather than reality; couple that with the ignorance, or outright lies, that seem to permeate the topic of homelessness in this community it’s no wonder the city council, board of supervisors and CAPSLO run roughshod here.


They, the city council, board of supervisors and CAPSLO know the division in this community on this subject and they count on the fact that the anger that the community has towards them will eventually turn to the homeless, leaving them, the city council, board of supervisors and CAPSLO, off the hook again, and again, and again.


I’ll be that straw man….


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SLO: The Santa Barbara Wannabe


I very strongly feel that this attraction is pivotal in greatly increasing the homeless population in SLO and that our numbers will compete with Santa Barbara’s once it has established itself.


One by one these self-serving city leaders of ours must be voted out for funding this grave venture without the people of SLO’s approval. No substantiable proof has been provided that shows Capslo can process the homeless people into housing. There isn’t any.


What a shame SLO people don’t have the opportunity to vote on this. The hometown fabric of our community risks endangerment wholly on this installation of this facility and it’s operations left completely to Capslo to manage and conduct.


It will directly compete with Santa Barbara’s 200 bed Homeless Services Shelter known as Casa Esperanza: http://casa-esperanza.org/cm/Home.html


Supervisors Ray and Gibson are on the chopping block June 3, SLO County Districts 2 and 4 respectively.


VOTE!


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freshair –


Some numbers that show that facts always trump ignorant fear mongering:


Santa Barbara County – Homeless Count Data for 2013


Fact 1) 2013 Homeless population at any given time = 6,250


Fact 2) 2006 Homeless population at any given time = 6,150


An increase of 100 people over 5 years? That’s hardly the “mass invasion” you imply.


Casa Esperanza – Is a 200 bed facility that closes down 100 of those beds during the summer months.


Casa Esperanza – Shows a deficit for the fiscal year of 2012-2013 while CAPSLO had a surplus.


Casa Esperanza – Their money comes almost evenly from grants, contributions and gifts.


Casa Esperanza – Spends over 80% of their operating budget on services, while only a little over 12% goes to administrative salaries. What says CAPSLO?


Maybe you and some of the other apathetic’s from this county should take a trip to Santa Barbara and see what they are doing right!


I have a call into their Shelter Manager to get some particulars.


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This is just like any other Bureaucracy. The real agenda is not to actually solve the problem it was created for, but rather become, and then evolve into a huge self -serving directorate. If the mission was to actually fix the problem, the operators would be out of a job after they did their job. Aww.. let us continue to reward incompetence, collect salaries and pensions, and life is good! (percontation point)


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Wow! I gave this a day-or-two to get a better sense of what all of you really feel and I have to say you neither disappoint or surprise. You take your anger and disappointment out on the homeless rather that getting off your collective dead asses and do something meaningful.


Always better, and easier, to bitch at those without a voice than those who do, right? Getting the answer you like is always easier than the one you need…


Shut up, all of you! Mr. Slanders has nothing on any of you!


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I think Ashbaugh needs to save his next years’ paycheck….to pay for all the one-way bus tickets sending back all the homeless (from other counties and Nevada), that get sent here to our New Homeless 100 bed Utompia! You bet the word is out, the new facility for the homeless is coming! Strike up the band and blow up some balloons. IT;s going to be one big party and most of the guests will be from L.A., Santa Cruz, SF, Fresno, Vegas…because afterall, SLO is preparing a New Free Hotel, waiting their arrival! I can see the cops in other counties buying those one-way bus tickets to SLO now.

YA, forget about the CAPSLO promises of “Give us your SS $ and WE will find you a perm home!” Nope, CAPSLO doesn’t worry about real housing, why should they when they can just keep you in control and keep you in a shelter? Besides what the difference? They both keep you out of the rain! That is of course if you don’t fail to follow the rules. OR get the bed bugs.


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Amen. And when the homeless population doubles yet again, as it will, guess what they’ll want to do – BUILD ANOTHER SHELTER!


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LAH, it is funny that you mention the above cities, cities where CAPSLO runs homeless services. I think they move (recommend to the clients) where the best services are so they come here, then the need rises, then more people get involved, then they need to hire more, pay more, build more and build a thrieving business. Then move them to the next cities and repeat the process and the $10 million CAPSLO budget for all the services they provide goes to $30 million, $50 million, $68 million and then before we know it #80 million, $100 million, etc. Kind of sounds like ACORN and its operations. Keep the folks down, in need and secure their jobs and incoming revenue.


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According to the US HUD 2013 Report to Congress, 22% of the nation’s homeless live in CA, which has approximately 10% of the US population.


The next two higest states are NY at 13% and Florida at 8% which both have about 6% of the overall US population.


Could there be so many more homeless here due to the policies of California lawmakers that subsidize this way of life? This problem will only continue to grow until the root causes are addressed no matter how much of our money you throw at it.


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Of course, those root causes have a lot to do with the shortage of jobs, and of decent-paying jobs needed to afford rent here. And nobody wants to tackle that issue, just too challenging. Easier to keep the starvation wages coming in a caviar-priced rental market.


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They have nothing to do with jobs. They have every thing to do with alcohol abuse drug abuse and people who just don’t care. Walk down higuera st and for every bum who hits you up for cash, ask yourself if he has likely looked for a job, ever.


Moreover, if you can’t afford to live somewhere, live somewhere you can afford. I want to live on the beach in Malibu, but I cannot afford it, therefore I do not move there and take up residence in a garbage can.


Time to take back the language, and stop calling the majority of these people “homeless”, and refer to them as what they are “bums”.


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Money leveraged with recent personnel changes at CAP-SLO?


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This is such a huge mistake, SLO has other problems to deal with,old water lines,streets that need work, raises to give freely,and to give money to an organization that has proven itself ineffective in handling the needs of the homeless to help build another money pit just doesn’t show good thinking.

On the other hand the county is no better giving a million and change to another useless oganization to buy property in Pismo to take off the tax rolls, there is so much dirt owned by the state or similar useless organization in this state its a wonder the taxpayer can even keep up,why do you think that they keep slamming us with fees and illegal taxes,these people keep pissing our tax dollars away on boondoggle purchases.


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Hmmm, where to begin…Ashbaugh, I would like to know what you find to be so very, very exciting about this? I mean are you planning on keeping drugs and alcohol out of this shelter unlike the existing one? Are you so excited because you are developing programs that will be offered during the day at this new supercenter that will liberate these people from oppression, heal them from traumatic life experiences so they can move on? Maybe identify their gifts and talents and equip them with opportunities and the confidence to use them to get back on their feet financially and then be able to pay it forward? Or maybe this one will just look better on the outside? are you are very, very excited that when you pass by it makes it easier for you to keep doing exactly that…driving by?….next, is CAPSLO still using the churches for the ‘family shelter’? And then telling the churches they are not allowed to help? In other words they are not allowed to act the way Jesus requires them to? And many of the church people obey them?…That’s what was going on while I stayed there…not so very long ago…the only fix to this problem is Love with action…you know, the real kind…the kind that does what everyone says it can’t….the kind that is actually very, very exciting…


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The homeless wont be able to “shoot up” or drink thei 42 ouncers in the facility, but the parking lot or neighbors properties nearby will be an acceptable alternative.


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John’s always excited when doing something the bureaucrats want. He licks their boots and eats out of their hands. Then gets excited at how deliciously decadent that was.


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