REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
September 13, 2022
FROM
MARTHA ZEPEDA, Deputy Executive Officer, Community Revitalization
SUBJECT
Title
Amendment to Contract with Orange Show Hospitality, Inc. for Continued Motel/Hotel Isolation Assistance for COVID-19 Positive Hospital Discharged Homeless Clients as Part of Project Roomkey
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Amendment No. 4 to Contract No. 21-123 with Orange Show Hospitality, Inc. for the continued provision of motel/hotel rooms for isolation capacity as a response to COVID-19 as part of Project Roomkey, increasing the total contract amount by $851,000, from $2,194,920 to a total amount not to exceed $3,045,920, with no change to the total contract period of January 1, 2021 through June 30, 2023.
(Presenter: Martha Zepeda, Deputy Executive Officer, 387-4438)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Promote the Countywide Vision.
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies and Stakeholders.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
This item does not impact Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The total cost for services will not exceed $3,045,920 and will be funded by the State of California Department of Social Services (CDSS) Project Roomkey grant funding. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Office of Homeless Services’ (OHS) 2022-23 budget.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
This recommended amendment will continue the Project Roomkey services with Orange Show Hospitality, Inc. to increase room availability for homeless persons referred from street outreach teams. The homeless population is particularly at higher risk than the average population for contracting coronavirus (COVID-19) because they are unsheltered. By providing non-congregate shelter,, to those who are referred by the street outreach team, the public’s health and safety are protected, and the County can lessen and/or avert threats created by these exigent circumstances. Project Roomkey funding is directly tied to COVID-19 as part of the Project Roomkey and Rehousing Strategy that was released by CDSS on November 18, 2020, following the March 2020 State of Emergency proclamation. These funds must be encumbered before the end of the current fiscal year.
This funding is specific to Project Roomkey and rehousing strategies for participants in Project Roomkey. Thus, the funding is being used for the provision of rooms for COVID-19 isolation and the navigation into more permanent housing. These funds are also being used to provide additional non-congregate emergency shelter beds for persons who are homeless and are high-risk priority, increasing the overall capacity. High-risk priority includes unsheltered individuals who are COVID-19 non-symptomatic and present healthy that meet the following high-risk criteria: 1) aged 65 years and older; 2) an individual of any age who has an underlying health condition such as heart disease, chronic lung disease or moderate to severe asthma, immunocompromised, or has an underlying medical condition that is not well controlled (e.g. diabetes, renal failure, or liver disease); and 3) pregnant women.
In maintaining Project Roomkey for this population, the County both ensures non-congregate shelter to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and allow for safer recovery while minimizing the strain on the healthcare system. At present, there is an existing process for the County hospital and Public Health Department to refer COVID-19 positive homeless persons to Project Roomkey for non-congregate shelter. The current room occupancy rate is 28 under the contract. This contract will pay for 35 rooms monthly, regardless of use, with 15 additional rooms available should the need arise and not paid unless used. During the term of the contract, should the County determine the need for these rooms no longer exists, the contract includes a termination for convenience clause.
On March 4, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom proclaimed a State of Emergency as a result of the COVID-19 threat. In early April 2020, the Governor announced the launch of Project Roomkey. Project Roomkey was developed as a state initiative to provide safe isolation capacity for the unsheltered homeless in order to protect them from COVID-19. COVID-19 is particularly dangerous for those experiencing homelessness. Individuals without stable housing not only face greater difficulty taking preventative actions, but are often in poorer health than other residents.
Project Roomkey was initiated through a collaboration between County, non-profit agencies, and local businesses, including the hospitality industry. The purpose of Project Roomkey is to provide non-congregate shelter and options, including emergency food services, for people experiencing homelessness; protect human life; and minimize the strain on the health care system capacity. Project Roomkey gives people who are experiencing homelessness and are recovering from COVID-19, or have been exposed to COVID-19, a place to recuperate and properly quarantine outside of a hospital. It also provides a safe place for isolation for people who are experiencing homelessness and are at high risk for medical complications were they to become infected.
Part of Project Roomkey’s top priorities, since the COVID-19 outbreak, has been to identify sites to house unsheltered homeless persons meeting high risk priorities, and quarantine unsheltered homeless persons who are asymptomatic to the virus, as well as those who have been diagnosed as COVID-19 positive. Unsheltered homeless refers to those whose primary nighttime residence is a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily not used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings. This may include sleeping in a car, park, abandoned building, bus or train station, or airport. This differs from sheltered homeless who are homeless persons that reside in an emergency shelter, transitional housing, or Safe Havens. Project Roomkey aims to keep these individuals out of shelters and encampments and lower the risk of exposure to other members of the homeless population by aggressively slowing the virus’s spread.
On January 26, 2021 (Item No. 69), the Board of Supervisors (Board) ratified Emergency Occupancy Agreement Contract No. 21-123 with Orange Show Hospitality Inc. for the provision of rooms to build isolation capacity as a response to COVID-19 to help protect public health and safety, in an amount not to exceed $290,000, effective January 1, 2021 through March 31, 2021, as approved by the Chief Executive Officer on December 30, 2020.
On March 23, 2021 (Item No. 38), the Board approved Amendment No. 1, effective April 1, 2021, to Contract No. 21-123 with Orange Show Hospitality, Inc., updating the contract terms, increasing the total contract amount by $569,488, from $290,000 to $859,488, and extending the contract period from March 31, 2021, for the total contract period of January 1, 2021 through September 30, 2021.
On September 14, 2021 (Item No. 17), the Board approved Amendment No. 2, effective October 1, 2021, to Contract No. 21-123 with Orange Show Hospitality, Inc. for continued provision of rooms for isolation capacity as a response to COVID-19 as part of Project Roomkey, updating the contract terms, increasing the total contract amount by $927,714, from $859,488 to a total amount not to exceed $1,787,202, and extending the contract period from September 30, 2021, for the total contract period of January 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022.
On April 12, 2022 (Item No. 14), the Board approved Amendment No. 3, effective April 12, 2022, to Contract No. 21-123 with Orange Show Hospitality, Inc. for continued provision of rooms for isolation capacity as a response to COVID-19 as part of Project Roomkey, updating the contract terms, increasing the total contract amount by $407,718, from $1,787,202 to a total amount not to exceed $2,194,920, and extending the contract period from June 30, 2022, for the total contract period of January 1, 2021 through June 30, 2023.
PROCUREMENT
Purchasing continues to support this non-competitive procurement based on the existing agreement. In maintaining the agreement for this specific location, the County saves on associated costs due to the case management, security, laundry trailer, and food services that are also provided on site. Through maintaining one primary location, COVID-19 exposure is also limited, and case management can be conducted most efficiently as case managers meet with multiple clients from the one location. If the need for isolation capacity continues, a competitive procurement will be initiated to ensure there is a variety of emergency shelter beds available at various locations across the county.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Suzanne Bryant, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on August 3, 2022; Purchasing (Bruce Cole, Supervising Buyer, 387-2148) on August 8, 2022; Finance (Christopher Lange, Administrative Analyst, 386-8393) on August 8, 2022; and County Finance and Administration (Cheryl Adams, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0238) on August 9, 2022.