29 Aug Homelessness Drop in Contra Costa County is Part of Larger Statewide Trend

Cecil Martinez stands outside his home along the Richmond Greenway Trail in 2022. (Denis Perez-Bravo / CC Pulse file)

By Malcolm Marshall and Danielle Parenteau-Dceker

Homelessness in Contra Costa County fell by 25.5% this year, a decrease that is part of a broader trend across California, where several large counties are reporting declines in both total and unsheltered homelessness.

According to Contra Costa’s 2025 Point-in-Time Count data, 2,118 people were counted as experiencing homelessness on a single night in January, which is 725 fewer than last year’s.

County officials attributed the progress to a combination of new housing developments, expanded shelter capacity, and close collaboration between county health services and community partners. Since 2023, the number of temporary and permanent housing beds in the county has increased by 34%, and new facilities like El Portal Place in San Pablo have opened to support residents transitioning out of homelessness.

Such facilities are just one example of how Contra Costa communities are working to address homelessness and help their unhoused residents.

Last year, El Cerrito, San Pablo and the Contra Costa County entered into an agreement to increase homeless services. Those services expanded again this year in West County with a boost to Coordinated Outreach Referral, Engagement team work in San Pablo, El Cerrito, Pinole and Hercules.

In East County, Antioch established a CORE team earlier this year and has taken steps to form a task force and temporary committee on homelessness. Antioch had the most unhoused residents in the Point-in-Time Count both this year and last, but the number dropped from 413 to 246.

Central, East and West Contra Costa each saw more than a 30% drop, with individual cities showing even greater reductions: Martinez declined by 60%, Richmond by 46%, and Antioch by 40%.

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Not everyone believes the numbers tell the whole story, however.

Nichole Gardner, founder of the nonprofit Facing Homelessness in Antioch, says the official count doesn’t match what she sees each week on the streets.

“When I first heard the numbers, I immediately thought something was wrong,” said Gardner. “There are a lot of people I serve who were never counted. There are camps out here that people don’t even know exist. You’d never guess there are people living in some of these places.”

Gardner said her organization has asked to help with the Point-in-Time Count but was denied.

“It frustrates me, because when the community hears that homelessness is going down, they think it’s no longer a problem,” she said. “Then they don’t want to support services or spend tax dollars on housing. But that’s just not true. We still need help. We still need housing, resources and support.”

She added that even those who enter transitional housing often end up back on the streets because they can’t keep up with the rent.

“Even when it’s just renting a room, it’s still a struggle, especially for someone just getting back on their feet,” Gardner said.

Statewide, preliminary data from other point-in-time data suggest similar trends. Local governments across California reported decreases in homelessness, including a 9.5% drop in unsheltered homelessness in Los Angeles County — the most populous in the nation —, a 22.6% decrease in total homelessness in Sonoma County, and a 26.7% drop In Kings County, according to an Aug. 18 statement by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Kings County, located in the San Joaquin Valley, saw the largest reduction at 26.7%, followed by Contra Costa County, according to the governor’s statement.

Newsom credited the progress to what he described as a comprehensive strategy combining mental health care, shelter expansion and support for local encampment resolutions. California has spent billions of dollars under Newsom on housing and homelessness measures, including efforts to help local governments move people out of encampments and into housing. But the state’s crackdown on encampments has drawn criticism from advocates, health experts and unhoused people themselves.

“I have been clear that I expect every community to address encampments and help get people off the streets and the support they need,” Newsom said in the statement. “Addressing encampments means more than just sweeping them up.”

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While the numbers are preliminary and pending final review by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, state and local officials said the early data is encouraging.

The governor’s statement said that since he took office, “California has significantly slowed that growth (of homelessness), even as many other states have seen worsening trends.”

Indeed, the nationwide count in 2024 “was the highest ever recorded,” according to HUD. And the National Homelessness Law Center and University of Miami School of Law Human Rights Clinic said in a report that the “Trump administration’s policies have further exacerbated the homelessness crisis.” It points to the administration “disrupting essential services for unhoused populations across the country,” revoking funding for mental health and substance abuse programs, and rescinding a fair housing rule.

Locally, Contra Costa Health leaders said they would continue pushing forward with housing- and health-based solutions.

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“For one, treat unhoused people like human beings. Stop criminalizing them,” Gardner said. “Even basic things like putting out porta-potties or dumpsters would make a huge difference. The community says they don’t want to see unhoused people on the streets but then they don’t want to pay for basic sanitation, either. So what do you want? If you don’t want to see it, help us provide real support.”

The full Contra Costa 2025 PIT Count summary is available here.