Fiscal Note
The proposed resolution authorizes a noncompetitive contract with Focus Counseling, Inc. from December 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022, at a price not to exceed $1,500,000, for the provision of non-congregate hotel sheltering as an alternative to unsheltered homelessness. The cost of the proposed contract is $215,000 per month. Costs incurred in 2021 will be funded by American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds already allocated for Unsheltered Homeless Support in the 2021 Community Development Division’s Operating Budget (adopted RES-21-00487; File No. 65935). Costs incurred in 2022 will be funded by reallocating a portion of the $2.5 million of ARPA State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds budgeted for the Hotels Converted to Housing capital project, subject to Common Council approval. No additional City appropriation is required to fund the proposed contract for purchased services.
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SUBSTITUTE BY TITLE ONLY: Authorizing the Mayor and City Clerk to enter into a sole source an emergency contract with Focus Counseling, Inc. for the provision of non-congregate hotel sheltering as part of the City’s efforts to provide alternatives to unsheltered homelessness, using American Rescue Plan Act State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds.
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WHEREAS, the City of Madison’s response to housing instability has included a range of strategies, for example, offering direct financial support to efforts to expand and improve affordable housing choices; revising zoning and land use policies to facilitate more housing options; supporting non-traditional housing models like tiny house villages; assisting those who are housed to remain in their homes; and taking steps to improve the safety, comfort and dignity of congregate shelter facilities for persons who require short-term shelter services, and;
WHEREAS, based on recent Point in Time survey data, collected twice each year, the number of people experiencing homelessness in Madison and Dane County on any given day can range from 650 to 800 people, and;
WHEREAS, based on that same data, during winter months, as many as 70-100 persons experiencing homelessness may be unsheltered, that is, not utilizing transitional housing or shelter facilities, and;
WHEREAS, before the resumption of enforcement of City ordinances prohibiting overnight camping in City parks, the Mayor and the Common Council tasked City staff with identifying safe and legal alternatives to such camping, in addition to existing congregate shelter facilities, and;
WHEREAS, experience gained through efforts to support persons experiencing unsheltered homelessness suggests it is important to provide venues that offer a degree of structure and support, and that seek both to help meet basic human needs of persons who use the venue and connect them to services and resources needed to secure more stable housing, and;
WHEREAS, one of two alternatives to congregate shelter facilities currently being prepared by City staff is the planned sheltered campground to be located on City-owned property on Dairy Drive, and;
WHEREAS, the lack of another suitable location for a second such arrangement, and the urgency raised by the change of seasons, suggests a need for a different alternative to complement the congregate shelter and Dairy Drive campground options, and;
WHEREAS, Dane County, using one-time federal American Rescue Plan Act funds, is currently providing temporary shelter services to approximately 100 people at a hotel property in the City of Madison, an arrangement expected to continue through June of 2022, and;
WHEREAS, that property has 35 additional rooms that are not currently being used by Dane County and could be made available to the City, and;
WHEREAS, Dane County contracts with Focus Counseling, Inc., a local service agency, to provide 24-hour on-site support services to the up to 100 adults being sheltered at the hotel, with the goal of helping people secure stable housing, and also provides meals and security services at the property, and;
WHEREAS, Focus Counseling Inc. has been providing such services under contract with Dane County since early last summer under the County’s “Vulnerable Population” hotel strategy, which has supported hundreds of persons experiencing homelessness, and;
WHEREAS, in order to create, in a timely manner, an additional, temporary alternative to existing congregate shelter facilities and the newly established Dairy Drive sheltered campground, for homeless adults camping in City parks and other locations, Community Development Division (CDD) staff recommend co-locating City programming using the available rooms at the property in use by Dane County, for a period of time not to extend beyond June 30, 2022, providing services comparable to those being offered by Dane County, and;
WHEREAS, CDD staff also recommend contracting with Focus Counseling Inc., the agency currently providing on-site services on behalf of Dane County, for a period not to extend beyond June 30, 2022, to carry out the City’s plan to secure, arrange and pay for hotel rooms, meals, security, and provide 24-hour on-site supportive services, and;
WHEREAS, the cost for Focus Counseling Inc. to provide the aforementioned services is projected to be approximately $215,000 per month, and;
WHEREAS, the availability of the hotel programming, as well as the sheltered campground at Dairy Drive, will prioritize unsheltered adults, including those who have used the Reindahl Park encampment, and who are identified on a census completed in late October at the City’s request, in collaboration with outreach providers, and;
WHEREAS, under MGO 4.26(3) and (4) a service contract of $50,000 or more that was not competitively selected must be approved by the Common Council and must meet one of the exceptions in MGO 4.26(4)(a), and this contract meets the “public exigency” exception in MGO 4.26(4)(a)1. - because the emergency conditions will not permit delay caused by a competitive selection process; and
WHEREAS, when spending federal grant money, federal guidelines require a formal competitive procurement for a contract that exceeds the Simplified Acquisition Threshold of $250,000, but this meets the federal criteria for noncompetitive selection in 2 CFR 200.320(c)(2): “public exigency or emergency for the requirement will not permit a delay resulting from publicizing a competitive solicitation;” and
WHEREAS, funds to cover costs incurred in 2021 will be paid out of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds allocated in the 2021 Community Development Division’s Operating Budget for Unsheltered Homeless Support in resolution RES-21-00487 (File No. 65935), and costs incurred in 2022 will be paid out of a portion of the $2.5 million of ARPA funds reallocated from funds designated for Hotels Converted to Housing, contingent upon the Common Council’s approval of such reallocation, anticipated to take place in the 2022 operating budget approval process.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Common Council authorizes the use of ARPA funds to implement City programming for adults experiencing unsheltered homelessness, at a site currently in use by Dane County for similar programming, and for a period not to extend beyond June 30, 2022, as part of an effort to bring to an end the use of Reindahl Park for overnight camping and resume the enforcement of City park ordinances, and;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Common Council hereby authorizes the Mayor and City Clerk to sign a noncompetitive contract for purchase of services with Focus Counseling, Inc. to take effect upon adoption of this resolution and continuing through June 30, 2022, at a price not to exceed $1,500,000, using ARPA State and Local Fiscal Recover Funds, for the purposes and at the price described above.