San Luis Obispo County officials say homelessness is declining as the region works toward the goal of cutting the problem in half by 2027, but future funding is uncertain.
At a Board of Supervisors meeting this week Deputy Director of Homeless Services Linda Belch shared early results from the county’s latest point-in-time count.
“Compared with the five-year plan targets, we have achieved a 24% reduction in total homelessness and a 42% reduction in unsheltered homelessness,” Belch said.
She added that the county has added hundreds of affordable housing units and expanded shelter and supportive housing programs over the past year.
However, Belch cautioned that future progress could be at risk due to declining state and federal funding. She also said many housing grants are based on unsheltered homelessness numbers, meaning the county could receive less funding.
“Because allocations are based on unsheltered homeless levels, San Luis Obispo County is eligible to receive less funding than we were in prior rounds—because of our success in deploying those dollars and achieving results,” she said.
Belch also noted a proposed federal change that could reduce regional housing support funding by about 40%.
At the end of the meeting, supervisors unanimously approved a voluntary regional agreement with the county’s seven cities to coordinate housing and homelessness services.
