Berkeley receives $4.7 million to house encampment residents
The city of Berkeley will receive a $4.7 million grant to rehouse 45 individuals who currently reside in encampments, California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday.
The money comes amid a surge in houselessness — a 2021 city report showed about 1,000 people sleep outside on any given night in Berkeley alone. According to a press release, this is part of a $14 billion package dedicated to establishing 55,000 new housing units and treatment slots to help vulnerable Californians experiencing houselessness. In total, Newsom awarded $50 million to local communities throughout the state to rehouse 1,401 unhoused individuals.
Several city council members said they welcomed this funding, including Berkeley City Councilmember Rigel Robinson.
“This award is a major win for the City of Berkeley and a significant step forward towards our goal of ending homelessness,” Robinson said in an email. “It will help us to meet the urgent needs of unhoused community members.”
The city has “a number of avenues” for allocating the money, including rent support, supportive housing and Project Homekey, according to City Councilmember Ben Bartlett. He noted Project Homekey is a statewide initiative to obtain motels and revamp them to permanently house individuals. However, Bartlett emphasized the funding allocation will depend on each person’s particular context.
Anthony Carrasco, a founding member of the Homeless Services Panel of Experts for the city of Berkeley, said he hopes the money can go towards acquiring hotels and motels.
However, Carrasco voiced concerns over the short-term nature of the funding. Although the award will rehouse 45 people, Carrasco does not believe it goes far enough. Rather, he says longer-term policies, such as permanent housing subsidies, are more effective at ending houselessness.
“It’s one-time funding; the crisis is not a one-time crisis,” Carrasco said. “When you have short-term funding, these long-term solutions are not possible.”
Carrasco added he will continue advocating for long-term funding for the ongoing crisis. He noted California understands houselessness as a “structural economic cycle” rather than a “decision or choice.” The best way for the state to address this crisis, he said, is to either lower the average cost of housing or raise incomes to make housing more affordable.
Carrasco also stressed the UC Berkeley community should care about addressing the city’s housing affordability crisis. Carrasco hopes the Berkeley community will seize this opportunity to present Berkeley as a model for other cities striving for a sustainable and equitable economic future.
“Real estate prices and property values keep going up because Berkeley is a very desirable place to live,” Carrasco said. “Part of being a modern, desirable city is having to deal with the growing pains of economic success, including displacement, homelessness and gentrification.”
Contact Aileen Wu at aileenwu@dailycal.org.