County awards $3 million to San Bernardino to assist homeless

Homelessness remains an ongoing challenge in San Bernardino and throughout California. The San Bernardino Board of Supervisors voted last week to award $3 million to the City of San Bernardino to develop projects to assist homeless residents. The funding comes from the $15 million San Bernardino County Housing Development Grant Fund created by the Board of Supervisors in March.

The City of San Bernardino plans to develop the San Bernardino HOPE Campus, a low-barrier homeless navigation center with 224 interim housing units and onsite supportive services.

“The City of San Bernardino has committed $18 million to this project,” Fifth District Supervisor Joe Baca, Jr., said of the HOPE Campus. “This shows our partnership in good faith. The City of San Bernardino has the largest number of homeless in the county. We know it’s just the beginning. We have a lot of work to do.”

The Board on Tuesday also approved a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Inland Empire Health Plan in which the Sheriff will refer potential IEHP members who are homeless to IEHP’s Housing Team. Those found to be eligible for Housing Care Management will receive housing assistance through an IEHP-contracted vendor, which may include finding a more permanent housing solution, coordinating move-in with a landlord and providing additional resources.