Supporting the Homeless Activists

Greetings!

Looking for effective means to support activists who are responding to the state's $500 million in one-time grants to address the homelessness problem,  I've decided to help provide them with a tool that worked twenty years ago when I participated in the implementation of another statewide grant program.  Though the tools for building a communications system amongst them have improved, a central non-governmental coordination entity needs to be dedicated to finding them all, and linking them in an easy to use system.  This week, I put a nonprofit together (Homeless Emergency Assistance Program Association) for that purpose.  Gathering contacts from county and state funding applications, newspaper articles, and allied advocacy groups, HEAPA's goal is to facilitate communication to share program and funding ideas at the grassroots level.

Looking back of what we did for First Five of California, I know you'll agree that success is dependent on connecting good people with good ideas.  Your contributions, like mine, are tax deductible.

Gregory Fearon
2040 Elizabeth Way
Santa Rosa, CA 95404
(707) 546-5771

Affordable Housing Described

Greetings!

A friend of mine who doesn't rent or own a house told me recently, "Supporting affordable housing in Sonoma County is a discussion over whether the nearly rich can live nearby the rich."   Thinking about my continuing efforts to get permanent subsidized housing for homeless included in a variety of public ventures lately, I tried to push back.

Sonoma County and Santa Rosa have been trying to find ways to build more housing, to replace those destroyed in the fire, and to keep pace with our general housing needs by building up downtown and along transit corridors.   But the cheapest unit anyone has proposed is still unaffordable to those making less than $50,000/year for a family four.  So affordable to whom?