Vancouver, Wash. – December 18, 2007 – Clark County’s Community Action program has released more than $3.5 million in grants for 2008-09 as part of its 10-year plan to end homelessness.
The Community Fund, supported with deed recording fees and Community Services Block Grant revenues, received a boost of approximately $750,000 with the passage last spring of Engrossed Second Substitute House Bill 1359 (ESSHB 1359). The bill creates an additional eight dollar document recording fee allowing counties to retain $7.20 from each eight dollars collected. The funds must be used to “directly accomplish the goals” of the county 10-Year Homeless Plan.
The new revenues will be used to enhance homelessness prevention programs, create a new program for youth transitioning from foster care, start a new program that moves chronically homeless people off the street and into housing, improve data collection, increase employment training for the homeless and those at risk of homelessness, and to start a program that provides individual development accounts.
The Community Fund will also continue to fund existing programs.
The Community Action Advisory Board reviewed grant proposals and made funding recommendations.
In a one-day count conducted in January 2007, 1,392 people were recorded as homeless in Clark County. More than 50 percent of those reported were families with children. Of those people counted, close to 30 percent were unsheltered – on the streets, in parks, sleeping in cars, or doubled up with family or friends.
Clark County recently updated its 10-Year Homeless Plan. The Council for the Homeless, community partners, the city of Vancouver, and Vancouver Housing Authority were all important partners in the process.
Programs selected for funding include:
Volunteer Lawyers Homeless Court $49,000
Salvation Army Moving Forward Together $118,800
Share ASPIRE Program $360,000
YWCA SafeChoice $424,000
Janus Youth ACORN – Foster transition $122,000
Council for the Homeless Clearinghouse $81,200
YW Housing Transitional Housing $248,000
Share Shelter operations/WHO $996,000
Community Services NW Welcome Home $173,000
Janus Youth Yellow Brick Road Outreach $223,000
Columbia River Mental Health Employment Navigator $245,000
YW Housing Ready to Rent $60,000
Volunteer Lawyers Volunteer Lawyers $70,000
Share Hunger Response $40,000
Council for the Homeless Community Voicemail $46,400
Council for the Homeless HMIS $75,300
Partners in Careers Moving Forward Together $51,400
Affordable Community Env. Emergency Rental Assistance $45,500
Share Individual Development Accts. $191,400
For more information about the Community Action program please visit:
http://www.clark.wa.gov/community-action/index.html.
