Santa Cruz Joins County Homeless Task Force To Fight Coronavirus

SANTA CRUZ, CA — A new task force in Santa Cruz County seeks to better protect and serve homeless individuals amid the new coronavirus outbreak.

The task force consists of more than a dozen people, including officials with the county Department of Human Services, cities of Santa Cruz and Watsonville, and experts from local nonprofits. It aims to boost existing efforts and ensure sick and healthy people are sheltered, the county said Tuesday in a news release.

“We have been working double time to meet all of the objectives set forth by the County and offer new sites for programming as those needs are identified," said Susie O'Hara, Santa Cruz city manager's assistant and task force member.

In Santa Cruz a homelessness manager has been hired and Santa Cruz City Schools are helping distribute 75 meals every day to homeless residents, according to the news release. The city is working with the Salvation Army and has hired people to serve the shelter at the National Guard Armory. The Housing Matters building on Coral Street has increased capacity for shelter and health assessments.

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Santa Cruz and Watsonville are close to finishing a plan to expand shelter capacity in accordance with the shelter-in-place order, which limits beds in shelters based on social distancing requirements, according to the release. More news on additional shelter locations is expected in the days to come.

The county said it has secured a lease with a hotel/motel and will prioritize housing homeless patients who have tested positive for the virus. The county will pursue additional such agreements if the need arises, but is not currently offering hotel vouchers for sick people in publicly available hotels for medical reasons.

The task force has asked the state for 5,600 meals for homeless residents, the county said in the release.

Officials also plan to ramp up efforts to expand shelters and hygiene infrastructure, and perform outreach. County outreach workers have been trained on COVID-19 symptoms.

“Care for people experiencing homelessness is a vital element of our overall plan to limit the spread of COVID-19 in the Santa Cruz County community," said Elissa Benson, assistant county administrative officer, in the release.

Full coronavirus coverage: California Coronavirus: Latest Updates On Cases, Orders, Closures