07 May San Pablo to Increase CORE Services for Unhoused Residents

(Image courtesy of city of San Pablo via Bay City News)

By Samantha Kennedy

Homeless services in West County are expanding once again, thanks to a one-year county partnership that includes the city of San Pablo.

The San Pablo City Council on Monday unanimously approved a $97,930 contract with the county to increase services in the city by up to 1.5 days per week from the Coordinated Outreach Referral, Engagement, or CORE team, beginning July 1.

Pinole, Hercules and El Cerrito will also receive services through the partnership.

The San Pablo Police Department “found CORE services to be beneficial to our residents experiencing homelessness,” city staff said in a report ahead of the meeting.

Last year, the city entered into a partnership with the city of El Cerrito and the county to expand services for unhoused residents, resulting in 300 additional contacts with unhoused residents being made.

CORE, whose work in San Pablo began in 2019, acts as an entry point for unhoused residents to receive health and basic needs services and help to secure housing.

According to the 2024 Point-In-Time Count, an annual count of unhoused residents, San Pablo saw a 13% decrease in the number of unhoused residents since 2023. Most unhoused residents in West County — 388 in 2024 — are in neighboring Richmond, with San Pablo having the second most at 35.

Less than a dozen unhoused residents each were accounted for in the 2024 survey in Pinole, El Cerrito and Hercules.

Numbers from the Point-In-Time Count are considered by many to be an undercount of unhoused residents because the survey is only done on a single day annually.

San Pablo is the latest city to expand CORE services. Antioch, which is home to the highest number of unhoused residents in the county, approved a city-dedicated CORE team this year.

The total cost for the partnership between the cities and the county is $308,790. Pinole and Hercules are both contributing $48,965 to the expansion.

City takes over homeless outreach, code enforcement for county property

While officials are handing over more responsibility to the county for overall outreach to unhoused residents in the city, locals will handle services for a county property known for being a “frequent location” for illegal encampments and dumping.

“Given the demonstrated success of San Pablo’s CRT and its partner agencies, City staff believe San Pablo is better positioned to manage homelessness and blight issues at this location,” staff said.

CRT is the Crisis Response Team located in the San Pablo Police Department’s Priority Oriented Policing, which looks to address homelessness, blight and community relations. CRT, whose work focuses on individuals experiencing homelessness and mental health crises, works with the code enforcement division to also tackle blight issues.

The partnership between the two, in addition to CORE’s 2024 expansion, has resulted in a 30% decline in unhoused residents over the last two years, according to the city.

CRT and code enforcement will take over services at the property located at the south curb line of El Portal Drive, west of the intersection of Fordham Street and including a portion of the San Pablo Creek.

Salvador Valle, who has been cleaning garbage from the property, asked who would continue to clean the area now that the city is taking over some responsibilities.

“There’s a lot of trash. It’s really bad,” he said, saying he’s found things like mattresses and gasoline. “I see you guys are doing stuff about the homeless, but who is going to do the cleanup?”

City Attorney Brian Hickey said “some of that obligation does remain with the county” because the city is only taking over code enforcement and homelessness. “There’s no change to the current cleanup obligations,” he said.

Vice Mayor Elizabeth Pabon-Alvarado said the city should take some responsibility for the cleanup.

“It’s in our city,” she said. “Whoever the property belongs to, doesn’t care about our creeks, about our water, about what’s going down there.”

Council member Patricia Ponce said she was also interested in “investigating that site.”