TO: COMMUNITY AND HUMAN SERVICES COMMISSION
FROM: MELISSA VOLLARO, RECREATION AND HUMAN SERVICE DIRECTOR
DATE: FEBRUARY 4, 2026
SUBJECT:
Title
2025 HOMELESS SERVICES UPDATE
Body
SUMMARY
The Recreation and Human Services Department provides periodic updates to the Community and Human Services Commission regarding the City’s ongoing efforts to address the needs of individuals experiencing homelessness. This report serves as the annual update for calendar year 2025 and outlines the programs, partnerships, and strategies implemented to mitigate homelessness and its associated impacts within the community.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the Community and Human Services Commission receive and file the 2025 Homeless Services Update.
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FINANCIAL REVIEW
The City’s response to homelessness is primarily funded through County and regional sources, including a variety of grant programs administered by partner agencies. In prior years, the City received Measure H funding directly from Los Angeles County, as well as Measure H and State budget earmark funds awarded through the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments (SGVCOG). Specific funding sources and allocations related to individual programs are discussed throughout this report.
Funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was included in the 2024-26 City Budget and designated for Community Based Organization (CBO) funding. Of this amount, $60,000 per calendar year was allocated to Homeless Services Programs.
Staff oversight related to the City’s homelessness response is supported within the existing budgets of the City Manager’s Office, the Recreation and Human Services Department, and the Police Department. The estimated staff cost to prepare this report is $2,302 and is included in the operating budgets of the Administrative Services and Recreation and Human Services Departments.
ANALYSIS
In 2019, the Cities of Pomona, La Verne, and Claremont formed a Cohort in partnership with Tri-City Mental Health Services (Tri-City) to implement their respective homeless action plans. The Cohort initially focused on administering Measure H funding awarded through SGVCOG. Although these funds have since been sunsetted and Measure A funding has not yet been made available to the Cohort, the group remains committed to prioritizing programs that address the needs of individuals experiencing homelessness.
City staff, in coordination with SGVCOG, continues to actively pursue alternative funding opportunities to support and expand homeless services beyond Measures H and A.
Community Navigator Program
A cornerstone of the Cohort’s efforts is Tri-City’s Community Navigator Program. This program is staffed by highly trained professionals who specialize in outreach, linkage, and referral to local resources for individuals experiencing homelessness. Community Navigators assist individuals, families, and caregivers in accessing a wide range of services, including mental health care, substance use treatment, medical services, legal assistance, food and clothing resources, and transitional or supportive housing options.
In addition to direct service provision, Community Navigators maintain close working relationships with community organizations, law enforcement agencies, schools, courts, residential facilities, the local National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) chapter, advocacy groups, and homeless shelters.
The Navigator model provides the foundational infrastructure for a localized system of care that is responsive to the needs of individuals and families. In 2025, the Community Navigator served 61 individuals in Claremont, coordinated temporary housing for eight individuals or families, and successfully assisted five individuals or families in securing permanent housing. Ongoing challenges remain, as approximately half of the individuals encountered are not yet willing to engage in services.
Los Angeles Centers for Alcohol and Drug Abuse (L.A. CADA)
In 2025, Claremont expanded its homeless services to include outreach provided by Los Angeles Centers for Alcohol and Drug Abuse (L.A. CADA). Funded through Measure A and coordinated by the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments (SGVCOG), L.A. CADA operates three outreach teams serving 15 cities across Los Angeles County’s Service Area 3 (SPA 3).
Claremont is served by one of these teams, which covers five cities and is present in Claremont three to four days per week, in addition to scheduled appointments. The team provides outreach and engagement services, links individuals to needed resources, offers transportation, and provides housing navigation support. L.A. CADA is also equipped to provide treatment and support for individuals experiencing addiction, behavioral health challenges, mental illness, and trauma.
While operating in Claremont, the team conducts regular outreach rounds and works closely with City staff, the Tri-City Community Navigator, and the Police Department. This coordination ensures a comprehensive and integrated approach to serving Claremont’s unhoused community.
Since August 2025, L.A. CADA has provided the following services to individuals experiencing homelessness in Claremont:
|
Service Type |
First Time |
Follow-up |
|
Food Pantry Linkage |
3 |
7 |
|
Housing Navigation |
15 |
20 |
|
On-Site Care |
2 |
0 |
|
Resources |
22 |
17 |
|
Snack Pack |
15 |
17 |
|
Building Rapport/Check In |
25 |
36 |
|
Identification Assistance |
0 |
1 |
|
Transportation |
3 |
3 |
|
Interim Housing Placement |
0 |
1 |
|
Benefits Assistance |
1 |
1 |
L.A. CADA provides Claremont with monthly reports that include the number of interactions they have with our unhoused community and what they are requesting. The reports also detail the areas of Claremont with the highest number of encounters each month.
Mobile Crisis Response/SGV Cares
In 2025, Tri-City Mental Health Services introduced its Mobile Crisis Response Team, designed to provide an alternative mental health response to non-violent, non-criminal calls received by the Claremont Police Department. The team will respond to individuals experiencing mental health needs, including those without permanent housing. The City of Claremont is currently finalizing contracts and implementation plans and anticipates launching this service soon.
In addition, SGV Cares, San Gabriel Valley’s regional homeless, mental health, and crisis response program administered through the SGVCOG, will provide an additional Mobile Crisis Response Team to serve Claremont. Program details and operational plans are currently being finalized, with the City planning to launch this service in Claremont in 2026 as well.
Shower Program
The Cohort continues its partnership with St. Ambrose Episcopal Church to operate a shower program that provides individuals and families experiencing homelessness with access to clean, safe, and dignified facilities. Showers are offered on Tuesdays and Fridays from 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM, with hours extended as needed. Hygiene supplies, towels, and a hot meal are provided. A mobile health van staffed by the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services visits monthly to provide medical care.
St. Ambrose Episcopal Church was awarded a $10,000 CBO grant for 2025 to continue the program and explore the construction of an additional shower unit. The Community Navigator regularly attends the program to provide outreach and resources.
Crisis Shelter Beds and Area Shelters
As part of the Cohort, the City currently has access to six crisis beds at the Hope for Home (H4H) Shelter in Pomona, which provides homeless services through a collaborative partnership model. Through partnerships with site-based service providers-including Volunteers of America, Tri-City, East Valley Community Health Center, Prototypes Inc., and SoCal Goodwill-H4H residents have access to a wide range of supportive services. In addition to shelter, these services include meals, health care, enrichment classes, employment support, community meetings and events, and laundry services. Placement into H4H beds is facilitated through referrals from the Navigator Program. In 2025, nine individuals were referred to H4H, with five successfully placed.
Beyond H4H, City staff have collaborated with Inland Valley Hope Partners (IVHP) to secure family rooms at the Our House Family Shelter in Pomona. IVHP applied for and was awarded a 2025 CBO grant of $3,500 to support services at the shelter. Additionally, Pacific Lifeline-a shelter for women with children in Upland-received a $3,500 CBO grant from the City of Claremont and is currently serving one Claremont family in its shelter and another in its transitional housing program. Foothill Family Shelter, also located in Upland, received a $3,500 CBO grant and had one Claremont family qualify for placement; however, the family ultimately declined to move in. City staff, Tri-City Navigators, and partner agencies continue to coordinate with IVHP to identify and refer eligible unsheltered Claremont families to available shelter resources.
Reunification
A trend seen in 2024 and continued into 2025 was unhoused individuals currently living in Claremont, but not originally from the San Gabriel Valley or surrounding areas, requesting assistance to be reunified with family members outside of the area. In 2025, City staff and our Tri-City Navigator worked with one individual to verify their situation, confirm that a family support system exists in their home community, and secure transportation home for them.
HEART Meetings
The Homeless Engagement, Assessment, and Response Team (HEART) was formed in May 2023 as an interdepartmental working group that meets monthly to discuss trends, challenges, and solutions related to homelessness. Members include representatives from the City Manager’s Office, Police Department, Recreation and Human Services Department, Community Services, Community Development, L.A. CADA, and Tri-City Mental Health.
HOST Deployments
In the summer of 2024, the Claremont Police Department, along with other Los Angeles County law enforcement agencies, received funding to support Homeless Outreach Services Team (HOST) deployments. This county-designated funding is intended to enable law enforcement agencies to proactively engage with individuals experiencing homelessness and connect them with services offered by city, county, and state partners.
Following mandatory training for Claremont Police Department personnel, the first HOST deployment took place in September 2024. These deployments are a collaborative effort involving the Police Department, Tri-City Mental Health, the Recreation and Human Services Department, and the City Manager’s Office. Together, these partners work to provide resources and support to Claremont’s unhoused residents. The deployments have also given City staff a clearer understanding of where individuals experiencing homelessness congregate, as well as their needs and demographics.
Law enforcement costs associated with HOST deployments are reimbursable. The reimbursement level is determined by factors such as city size, the number of documented homeless individuals, and available local resources. While patrol staffing needs take priority, when additional personnel are available, between three and eight HOST deployments were scheduled per month. In 2025, deployments were conducted from January through May. For the remainder of the year, funding was available on a more limited and sporadic basis, resulting in fewer deployments.
San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments (SGVCOG)
SGVCOG is a regional government planning agency that aims to maximize the quality of life in the San Gabriel Valley that is made up of 31 cities, two Los Angeles County Supervisorial Districts, and three Municipal Water Districts located in the San Gabriel Valley. The SGVCOG has a Governing Board, as well as nine standing committees and working groups, one of which is the Homelessness Committee. Councilmember Jed Leano represents the City as a voting member of the Homelessness Committee, which studies problems, programs, and other matters that pertain to regional homelessness issues and provides policy direction to the Governing Board.
Point-in-Time Homeless Count
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the largest source of homeless program funding, requires that Continuum of Care (CoC) communities that receive HUD CoC funding, such as Los Angeles County, perform a “one-day, point-in-time” unduplicated count of people experiencing homelessness. The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) oversees the count in Los Angeles. County. Results of the Homeless Count provide the County and local cities with benchmark numbers that serve as a basis for developing local community and countywide strategies to help people find long-term housing solutions.
The 2026 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count took place on January 21, 2026. Results from that will be released in the late spring/early summer of 2026. In 2004, the Homeless Count reported a range of 33-36 unhoused individuals in Claremont. In 2025, LAHSA changed how they reported data, and stated that Claremont had a total of 8 unsheltered individuals not in a dwelling and 16 unhoused individuals in dwellings.
Identified Gaps in Services
While the City of Claremont, in partnership with dedicated service providers, has demonstrated the ability to leverage funding and deliver a range of services to individuals experiencing homelessness, the City continues to face a shortage of interim and permanent supportive housing options. Efforts by Tri-City Mental Health Services, the Cohort, SGVCOG, L.A. CADA, and other service providers show that unsheltered individuals are being effectively engaged; however, limited housing availability remains a barrier for those willing to accept assistance.
The City will continue to identify and pursue potential funding opportunities and leverage local and regional resources to expand interim and permanent supportive housing options within the community.
PUBLIC NOTICE PROCESS
The agenda and staff report for this item have been posted on the City website and distributed to interested parties. If you desire a copy, please contact the Recreation and Human Services Department.
Submitted by: Prepared by:
Melissa Vollaro Michelle Castillo
Recreation and Human Services Director Management Analyst