Housing programs for homeless in Stanislaus County get $3.1 million in federal funds

The federal government has awarded $3.1 million for housing and programs for the homeless in Modesto, Turlock and Stanislaus County.

The grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development renew funding for programs that assist the chronically homeless, young adults living on the streets and homeless families.

HUD awarded about $16 million for more than 100 homeless programs in the San Joaquin Valley, where an estimated 7,500 people experience homelessness. The $3.1 million is for social service agencies in the Stanislaus Housing and Support Services Collaborative or what HUD calls a “continuum of care.”

The grants include $1.15 million for the Housing Authority’s Shelter Plus Care, which provides housing for chronically homeless adults who have a mental illness and problem with substance abuse.

Community Housing and Shelter Services of Modesto received $186,000 for the Households in Recovery Program and $235,000 for supportive housing services for homeless families with children.

Community Impact Central Valley was approved for $842,600 for a variety of “HALO” housing units.

More than $120,000 in funding was renewed for the Center for Human Services’ Pathways transitional living program to keep young adults off the streets. Pathways is housing 15 young people age 18 to 21, with 14 of them working part-time, a director said.

“It is important to keep that funding coming into this community,” said Taryn Muralt, a Center for Human Services program director and president of Stanislaus Housing and Supportive Services. “If we didn’t have that funding, a great number of individuals would not be housed.”

Turning Point of Stanislaus County was not approved for $137,000 in renewal funding for 11 housing units. Turning Point’s request was ranked last for the HUD funding.

Ruben Imperial, community development and empowerment manager for the county, said local agencies are organizing a new coordinated system of care aimed at stopping reductions in federal funding for homeless services.

The federal government awarded almost $2 billion for homeless programs nationwide, including more than $350 million for California. In 2010, President Barack Obama and federal agencies formed an interagency council with a goal of ending homelessness. Since the strategy was launched, communities in the San Joaquin Valley have reported a 43 percent reduction in the homeless population, a HUD news release said.

In Stanislaus County, HUD also renewed funding this week for:

▪ We Care Turlock permanent housing: $46,800.

▪ Stanislaus Homeless Management Information System: $173,530.

▪ Stanislaus County Affordable Housing Corp.: $100,000.

This story was originally published December 21, 2016 at 7:29 PM with the headline "Housing programs for homeless in Stanislaus County get $3.1 million in federal funds."