6 years later, in summer of 2017 we may have a day center . . . but will it be incomplete? And underfunded? And understaffed? And set up for failure? It appears to be headed that way – but hopefully the city council and county board will step in! Committees throughout the city and county are saying enough is enough, do this right. Again, catching up from vacation, but the Health and Human Needs meeting is tonight (5:30 room 351) and advocates should plan to attend! I hope I got this all correct. Trying to piece things together from email, facebook and elsewhere.
I knew I was going to be missing an important meeting about the day center concept paper that the United Way and their hand picked non-profit to run the day center, er . . . I mean city and county staff . . . had written that is supposed to be guidance for the RFP to hire the United Way agency . . . er, I mean, to be a fair and nuetral process of contracting with a qualified agancy. This concept paper ignores all input they have received from advocates – as they have since day one.
Here’s Heidi’s Wegleitner’s email to advocates the day after the Homeless Issues Committee meeting:
In November, Dane County put out the comprehensive day resource center RFP with a $300k budget commitment from City County United Way. When I pointed out that amount failed to include the $30k additional the County Board added to the budget, the RFP was amended. Only one response was received and it came in with a $450k budget and was rejected. Multiple providers said they didn’t apply because the County was expecting them to contribute/fundraise over 25% of the costs of operation (at least $120k). The “funders” then came together, to the exclusion of advocates and stakeholders, to put together a concept paper (which cut an important day center priority of homeless persons- long term storage, think winter coats and sleeping gear) prior to reissuing another RFP, that neither identifies nor recommends additional sources of funding to close the funding gap. This is truly baffling to me because the City and County have almost $600k budgeted in 2016 for the day center and day services, almost all of which make sense to redirect to the day center operations. This is $600k without including the $100k commitment from United Way. The money is there to fully fund operations, offer good salaries, and attract quality respondents. The County and City have made this a priority, but the County Department head wants to cut funding for homeless services in 2017 instead of getting this project–finally–off the ground. I’ve had it. This is unacceptable. It’s time for elected officials and the community to stand up for the comprehensive day resource center project (and those who need the services and support it would provide), commit to this funding (already there–it is not hard), and get this done.
The concept paper is at the Homeless Services Consortium Board Friday at 11 and the HHN committee next Wed. I need your help.
More details and talking points being prepared.
Thanks,
Heidi
Whoa. Apparently that committee referred this item to its June 13th meeting.
The Human Services Board ended up recommending the following:
The amount currently budgeted can be increased from $310,000 because there is over $500,000 currently budgeted in operations of the permanent comprehensive day resource center and current (Hospitality House) or past (Bethel) noncomprehensive day centers and interim day services (laundry, storage, outreach and case management at Central library, and transportation to scattered site services). Porchlight, Inc., which operates Hospitality House, has repeatedly represented that it is not interested in continuing to operate the Hospitality House as a day center when the permanent comprehensive day resource center opens. The operations should be fully funded and the funding can be found as follows.
1. Existing 2016 operations commitments from Dane County, the City of Madison, and United Way of $310,000.
– Dane County $130,000
– City of Madison $80,000
– United Way $100,0002. Redirecting existing operations funding for current and past day centers and Countyfunded van transportation of $112,884 (plus $31,846 potentially available in unspent funding due to the Bethel day center closure.
– 2016 Dane County funding for Bethel at $80,560 ( + $31,846 unpaid to Bethel in 2016 which should be redirected for interim services or carried over for day resource startup costs)
– 2016 Dane County funding of Hospitality House $7324 (would become available when permanent day resource center opens, currently set for July 2017)
– $25k van transportation funded by county (currently operated by Porchlight)3. Redirecting $54,000 in City funding for interim day services including the operation of temporary personal storage, laundry programs, and City contribution to van service which should be provided instead at the centralized, permanent comprehensive day resource center site. If the City van transportation is not included in the $54,000 total, that funding should be redirected as well to support transportation support for the comprehensive day resource center. Note this does not include central library outreach/case management funding (believed to be $68,000), which could be used to continue those services at the library
or repurposed for an additional housing locator, housing first outreach, housing first case manager, or housing first rent subsidy.The budget should be amended to include at least $476,884 in operating funds available for the
comprehensive day resource center. In addition $31,846 should be carried over and made available or spent on homeless gap services in 2016.Should the County proceed to privatize these services, as currently planned, with a nonprofit agency, the RFP should include at least $476,884 in these funding commitments. If instead, the County staffs the comprehensive day resource center with public employees, these funds should be available for hiring staff and operating the comprehensive day resource center. Due to City regulation, this would require a zoning change by the City of Madison. It would, however, eliminate the need for an RFP process.
The Homeless Services Consortium Board met on Friday and unanimously supported these funding recommendations.
Health and Human Needs meets tonight. 5:30 in room 351 of the City-County Building.
A possible County Resolution that could be considered has been drafted to say the following:
In November, 2015, Dane County issued a request for proposals (RFP) for operators for a comprehensive day resource center to serve homeless individuals and families in Dane County. The RFP, as amended, committed $330,000 in operations funding, recognizing that the operator would have to bring its own additional resources to the table, through other grants or private fundraising, to operate the day resource center. The County’s RFP amount was based on permanent day resource center funding of $130,000 from the County, $100,000 from the City of Madison, and $100,000 committed from the United Way of Dane County. The only respondent to the RFP came in with a budget of $450,000 to operate the day resource center and was rejected because it was over the amount of $330,000 offered in the County’s RFP. Other potential RFP respondents indicated they did not apply because they would not be interested in taking on such a substantial fundraising burden to operate a comprehensive day resource center.
After the RFP response was rejected, representatives from Dane County, the City of Madison, and the United Way, and other potential private funders, including Downtown Madison, Inc. and Catholic Charities, met to review the concept for the day resource center and the funding commitments. In April, 2016 a concept paper was released based on the discussions. The concept paper proposes a new RFP be issued based on $310,000 of funding commitments—$130,000 from Dane County, $80,000 from the City of Madison, and $100,000 from the United Way. The concept paper also indicates that the total budget for the day resource center is $427,398, which leaves a funding gap of $117,398 for the day resource center operator to contribute from its own funds or fundraising.
For the past several years as Dane County has been attempting to site and open a permanent day resource center, Dane County and the City of Madison have been collaborating on interim day services to address the needs that are unmet due to the lack of a permanent day resource center. These unmet needs include access to day shelter space, laundry, personal storage, case management, and van transportation to these services offered at scattered sites. These interim services were not intended to continue at these scattered sites once the permanent comprehensive day resource center opened because the services would then be located at the permanent comprehensive day resource center. Porchlight, Inc., has repeatedly represented that it would not continue to operate the Hospitality House once the permanent comprehensive day resource center opens. The funding for these services is reflected in the 2016 budgets for Dane County and the City of Madison and is available to be redirected in 2017, when the permanent day resource center is planned to open. Redirecting these funding lines to operations for the permanent day resource center would enable Dane County to release funding commitments at least equal to the amount needed to fully fund operations for a comprehensive day resource center, closing the $117,398 funding gap and allowing an operator to offer competitive salaries to staff.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that Dane County add to its annual permanent comprehensive day resource center funding commitment by redirecting $87,864 in annual funding for interim homeless day services at Bethel Lutheran ($80,560) and at Hospitality House day center operated by Porchlight, Inc. ($7324) to the operations of the comprehensive day resource center;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Dane County redirect $25,000 in annual funding for van transportation operated by Porchlight, Inc. to support transportation services out of the comprehensive day resource center;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Dane County designate $31,846 in unspent funding for day services at Bethel Lutheran for unmet homeless needs and carry it over into 2017 for the same if it is unspent in 2016;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Dane County commits to adding a long-term personal storage program to the day resource center concept to offer homeless persons a place to store smaller personal items including winter coats and sleeping gear, but not furniture, which they can access during the day resource center hours of operation;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Dane County requests the City of Madison to commit to adding to their annual permanent day resource center commitment by redirecting funding of at least $57,000 in interim homeless services, currently supporting laundry, personal storage, and van transportation, to support those services at the comprehensive day resource center;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Dane County requests that the coordinated intake program funded by the City of Madison at approximately $145,000 operate out of the comprehensive day resource center;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that until such time as the comprehensive day resource center opens, which is currently planned for July 2017, permanent comprehensive day resource center operations funding should be used to provide interim services to the homeless in collaboration with the City of Madison and homeless services providers;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Dane County encourages potential comprehensive day resource center operators and RFP respondents to pursue additional resources, private funding commitments, and in-kind contributions from partner agencies, to enhance the operations plan, attract highly-qualified staff, and offer a comprehensive range of services and programs;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Dane County should explore ways to incentivize the comprehensive day resource center operator to successfully obtain funding from other sources;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that any future RFP issued for the operations of the comprehensive day resource center reflect the full amount available from redirection of funding as set forth herein; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the 2017 Department of Human Services Budget be prepared in accordance with this resolution.
I expect a similar city resolution to be coming forward as well.
If this all works out, we’ll be closer to where we need to be . . . but it shouldn’t have to be that hard. 6 years . . . Dane County and Madison Wisconsin people are not this incompetent . . . this is embarrassing.
