Gavin Newson Feb 19, 2020
https://www.kqed.org/news/11802346/gov-newsom-once-again-takes-on-homelessness-this-time-statewide
As mayor, Newsom had also launched an ambitious 10-year plan in 2004 to end chronic homelessness and pledged to build 3,000 new units of supportive housing. By 2014, San Francisco built 2,669 of the units that Newsom pledged as mayor but homelessness still rose — climbing to 6,775 people by 2015.
And it continues to grow.
A decade after Newsom left the mayor’s office, homelessness is a bigger issue than ever, with solutions seeming more out of reach than ever before.
He kicked off the year with a proposal to direct $1.4 billion of the state budget to pay for rent subsidies, board and care homes, health services and affordable housing, and then went on a statewide tour of emergency shelters and mental health care centers. And he started distributing the first two dozen of 100 former FEMA trailers and tents to provide immediate housing for people experiencing homelessness.
On Wednesday, Newsom said the state would make available 286 state-owed properties such as vacant lots, fairgrounds, armories and other state buildings for potential shelter options that local governments can use for free.
To speed up construction of affordable housing and shelters, Newsom said he would like to bypass state environmental reviews, which are sometimes used to block and delay projects. He also urged the Legislature to reform land use laws to eliminate delays on affordable housing projects around transit hubs and downtown areas.
"I respect local control, but not at the cost of creating a two-class California," he said.
Friedenbach, a staunch critic of Newsom’s tenure in San Francisco, is hopeful. She was pleased to see Newsom's executive order to use surplus state land for emergency shelters and his push to provide significant one-time funds to address homelessness.
“I’m a big believer in redemption,” she said.
As mayor, Newsom had also launched an ambitious 10-year plan in 2004 to end chronic homelessness and pledged to build 3,000 new units of supportive housing. By 2014, San Francisco built 2,669 of the units that Newsom pledged as mayor but homelessness still rose — climbing to 6,775 people by 2015.
And it continues to grow.
A decade after Newsom left the mayor’s office, homelessness is a bigger issue than ever, with solutions seeming more out of reach than ever before.
He kicked off the year with a proposal to direct $1.4 billion of the state budget to pay for rent subsidies, board and care homes, health services and affordable housing, and then went on a statewide tour of emergency shelters and mental health care centers. And he started distributing the first two dozen of 100 former FEMA trailers and tents to provide immediate housing for people experiencing homelessness.
On Wednesday, Newsom said the state would make available 286 state-owed properties such as vacant lots, fairgrounds, armories and other state buildings for potential shelter options that local governments can use for free.
To speed up construction of affordable housing and shelters, Newsom said he would like to bypass state environmental reviews, which are sometimes used to block and delay projects. He also urged the Legislature to reform land use laws to eliminate delays on affordable housing projects around transit hubs and downtown areas.
"I respect local control, but not at the cost of creating a two-class California," he said.
Friedenbach, a staunch critic of Newsom’s tenure in San Francisco, is hopeful. She was pleased to see Newsom's executive order to use surplus state land for emergency shelters and his push to provide significant one-time funds to address homelessness.
“I’m a big believer in redemption,” she said.
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