Oct. 26, 2023 (SFChronicle.com)
A new website that was slated to launch Thursday seeks to help people on the brink of homelessness access a wide range of resources meant to keep them housed.
Called Stay Housed Bay Area, the site is operated by the nonprofit All Home in an effort to break down barriers for finding aid across the Bay Area — making it the first comprehensive guide of its kind in the region. People looking for help with rent payments, food and other needs are typically limited by what a particular city or county offers.
The new site seeks to broaden access to resources to keep people housed, regardless of where they live in the Bay Area.
“People here cross city and county lines all the time, without even thinking about it,” said All Home CEO Tomiquia Moss, who has spearheaded several initiatives to address regional homelessness and poverty, including last year’s “Big Moves” housing and workforce plan.
“Now no matter where you are, there’s one simple place where you can find the best help that’s available in your area.”
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All Home’s research shows that just $6,000 can help many precarious people stay inside, as opposed to the tens of thousands of dollars it costs to aid them after they’ve hit the street. By comparison, a shelter bed can cost $60,000 a year, and severely dysfunctional homeless people can rack up more than $85,000 a year in hospital, street cleanup and other public costs.
“We want to change the narrative around homelessness prevention, that it’s critical, not just something nice to have,” said Mary Kate Johnson, All Home’s director of regional homelessness prevention. “There is such a complicated patchwork of resources and systems — we created this site to demystify the patchwork.
“A lot of people using this site could be having a problem with their landlord, need help bridging rent if they’re between jobs … all kinds of precarious situations. We want this to be easy to use so they can get the help they need fast.”
The region-wide platform, created in conjunction with the altruistic tech nonprofit One Degree, will be continually updated and offered in both English and Spanish.
Reach Kevin Fagan: kfagan@sfchronicle.com
Written By Kevin Fagan
Kevin Fagan is a longtime, award-winning reporter at The San Francisco Chronicle, specializing in homelessness, enterprise news-feature writing, breaking news and crime. He has ridden with the rails with modern-day hobos, witnessed seven prison executions, written extensively about serial killers including the Unabomber, Doodler and Zodiac, and covered disasters ranging from the Sept. 11 terror attacks at Ground Zero to California’s devastating wildfires. Homelessness remains a core focus of his, close to his heart as a journalist who cares passionately about the human condition.
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