On Tuesday, the City of Carlsbad’s homeless response team provided an update on its Homelessness Action Plan, which outlines the city’s approach to achieving its goal of reducing homelessness and its effects on the community.

The semi-annual report reflects data from the first half of the fiscal year, July through December 2023. The report includes multiple data points, including data from city programs and the 2024 Point-in-Time Count results. Reviewing this data together helps the city broadly assess its efforts.

The report shows steady progress on the city’s efforts to help people experiencing homelessness. Here are some highlights:

The report shows continued improvements in reducing the impacts of homelessness on the community when comparing the same period from the last two fiscal years.

• Overall, the number of total Police calls for service related to homelessness decreased by 14%.
• Dispatched calls for service, or calls initiated by community members, dropped 46% between fiscal year 2022-23 and fiscal year 2023-24.
• Proactive calls for service, where police officers conduct community checks, increased by 20%. During the city’s traffic safety emergency, officers from the Police Department’s Homeless Outreach Team were temporarily reassigned to support traffic safety efforts. After the emergency proclamation ended in fall 2023, these officers returned to their homeless outreach duties, including conducting more frequent proactive calls for service.

Looking ahead

The City Council also approved agreements at its Tuesday meeting for two homeless services programs.

A new grant from the Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development will pair supportive services with the city’s Housing Choice Voucher program for people transitioning from homelessness to housing.

• People exiting homelessness frequently require more support as they transition into housing.
• This program will address individual needs and help people create goals to help them stay in housing. Goals can include things like accessing health care, increasing income, budgeting or accessing in home support for medical needs.
• Funds will also be used for mental health and substance abuse treatment services as needed.

The city’s employment and benefits services program has also been extended to continue work connecting people experiencing homelessness to employment and benefits they may be owed.

• With increased income, households are increasingly able to obtain housing and stabilize.
• Since October 2022, the program has helped 65 people find employment or apply for benefits.