December 5, 2016

Temporary Housing and Drug Treatment Partnership Pilot Program to Help Homeless San Diegans

San Diego Housing Commission will administer the City of San Diego’s partnership SMART pilot program

San Diego, CA —Homeless San Diegans who are caught in a repeating cycle of receiving citations or misdemeanor charges, such as trespassing and drug use, will obtain temporary housing and access to drug treatment programs to help them get back on their feet through the City of San Diego’s SMART pilot program, which is composed of multiple City and County partners, including the San Diego Housing Commission (SDHC).

SDHC will administer the SMART pilot program with approximately $98,000 from the City of San Diego, which will fund up to 10 beds in temporary housing that will be provided by the San Diego Second Chance Program, a nonprofit organization that provides sober living transitional housing and job readiness programs.

The Second Chance Program will also provide basic necessities, such as furnishings, blankets, emergency food, and bus passes, as well as helping SMART program participants to locate affordable permanent housing.

Case management and drug treatment programs will be provided by Family Health Centers of San Diego, funded through a contract with the County of San Diego Behavioral Health Services Division, with the goal of also decreasing emergency room visits and drug use.

“The San Diego Housing Commission is proud of the spirit of collaboration in support of the SMART program, which combines supportive services with housing that is essential to the success of efforts to address homelessness,” said SDHC President & CEO Richard C. Gentry.

The City Attorney’s Office collaborated with the San Diego Police Department and San Diego Sheriff’s Department to create the SMART program.

“This program is going to help bridge the gap between the supportive care and services that are needed for the chronic offenders that are stuck in the revolving door of the criminal justice system. We are confident with all of us coming together, that this program is going to work,” said San Diego Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman.

Individuals who are eligible for the SMART program:

• Currently face a drug or quality-of-life offense, such as trespassing, illegal lodging or misappropriation of lost property;
• Have at least two arrests for quality-of-life offenses in the last six months; and
• Have at least one drug offense since November 2014, when Proposition 47 took effect, reducing several drug-related offenses from felonies to misdemeanors.

Participation in the SMART program can be offered to eligible individuals at different times:

• During a contact with one of the Family Health Centers of San Diego’s outreach workers or the San Diego Police Department’s Homeless Outreach Team or Quality of Life Team;
• When San Diego Police cite an individual for a low-level offense;
• When an individual is arrested;
• At an arraignment;
• At a sentencing hearing, as an alternative to incarceration; and
• While an individual is serving a sentence in jail.

An eligible individual who agrees to participate in the SMART program will be diverted from prosecution and incarceration, and will be provided with:

• Secure, supportive housing for up to two years;
• Enrollment in a tailored drug treatment program; and
• A case manager to provide assistance.

SMART program partners also include the County Office of the Public Defender, and the American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties.

For more information about SDHC, visit www.sdhc.org

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Media Contact:
Maria Velasquez
Chief Communications Officer
San Diego Housing Commission
619-578-7560
mariav@sdhc.org