A recent article, highlighted by the California Department of Housing and Community Development, brings to our attention the growing number of older, scattered-site affordable housing resources which are being sold to new owners. In the last six months, the Santa Rosa Housing Authority (I’m a newly-appointed member) has authorized the sale of six key low income housing properties built and previously operated by Community Action Partnership of Sonoma County and Community Housing Sonoma County. The reasons for the sales were stated as the lack of available operating revenue from rents for maintenance and tenant support.

The article provides the background for what it expects to be a greatly expanded pattern of such sales, describes its broader impact, and poses some solutions. I would encourage comments to this post, and to the County and City housing authorities.

Recent Brown Act Changes in Detail approved by SB 707

Thanks to the Sonoma County and Santa Rosa Housing Authorities, we have the list of facilities who they have supported in the past very many years.

At tomorrow’s Sonoma County Board of Supervisors meeting, the awrding of $12,400,000 in combined County Measure O and State HHAP funds will be approved (Regular calendar, first Item #15 -sometime between 10-11am). Here is the detail of what was submitted and what’s being approved.

Last Friday, Feb 6th, I spent 30 minutes with Jan Cobaleda-Kegler, Sonoma County Behavioral Health Director, at her invitation. I had emailed both her boss (Nolan Sullivan, Director of the Health Services Department), and Christina Rivera (County Executive Officer), advising them that I had plans to utilize a new permanent authority of the Updated Brown Act which allowed members of legislative bodies to communicate with the public (wsee an earlier post on this website). Christina asked Nolan to ask Jan to get together with me, after consulting the Sonoma County Counsel. All were interested in convincing me to let the County facilitate public input on the Draft FY26-29 Proposition One Integrated Plan only on the County website.

Dr. Cobaleda-Kegler was well aware of my frustration over receiving the Draft Plan so late in this fiscal year, and finding ourselves with four months left before its required approval by the Board of Supervisors. Though frequently used by cities, I told her that the kind of direct document public comment needed in such a detailed plan has never been attempted by the County. She countered that she thought the Department’s website capabilities were improving, and that she wanted me to let the County try before implementing my solution. I agreed, and she said she would be meeting with the Department and County IT staff soon.

Yesterday morning, State Senator Mike McGuire and State Assemblyman Chris Rogers, two who represent the City of Santa Rosa in the California Legislature held a Town Hall meeting in the Central Santa Rosa Downtown Library. The summary and transcripts of the meeting is posted below, and reports a conversation that I led the meeting off (10:54;00) asking for state funding support from them to allow our County’s behavioral health programs to meet the needs of its residents.

The Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA) requires counties to submit three-year
Integrated Plans (IPs) for Behavioral Health Services and Outcomes. Here is the Marin County’s Integrated Plan. The first submitted to the California Behavioral Health Planning Council and the California Department of Health Care Services. Missing from this Plan, and somehing I am interested in including in Sonoma County’s Plan, is the comprehensive Departmental Budget (including all funds administered) indicating how braided revenue ources are supporting all of our programs.

Preparing for the February 3rd meeting (4-5pm in the Santa Rosa Conference Room at 1450 Neotomas Ave) of the Annual Report/Integrated Plan Subcommittee of the Sonoma County Behavioral Health Board, here are some annual reports from eleven selected California counties from FY 23-24, and several previous years from CALBHBC.org.