Burlingame looks to Millbrae for homeless help

A successful program in Millbrae to find stable housing for its homeless population through nonprofit assistance is being looked at in Burlingame, where officials are discussing a similar initiative.

The homeless population is not large in Burlingame. According to the 2022 one day homeless count, there were 1,092 unhoused people in the county and 10 in Burlingame — down from 25 in 2019, said Jeremy Kirshner, assistant to the city manager, during a City Council study session Nov. 7. There are some obvious restrictions to one day snapshot data, he noted, adding that the Police Department estimates more accurate numbers at three to six individuals a night.

Some initiatives to consider would be a city-sponsored homelessness count, dedicated employees contracted through service provider organizations like LifeMoves and the possibility of on-site psychologists, Kirshner said, adding preserving and adding affordable housing is also key in preventing homelessness.

“I know we don’t have a massive homelessness program, but I think we can see trends, and I think it’s helpful for us to be ready with ideas and solutions,” Mayor Michael Brownrigg said.

In Millbrae, officials there hired employees from LifeMoves, a nonprofit which offers tailored paths to stable housing and other resources. Millbrae has been successful in housing hundreds, Kirshner said.

Burlingame Mayor Michael Brownrigg applauded that success.

“If you have successfully housed 415 people in 18 months, that’s one and a half people a day. Kudos to the city of Millbrae,” he said.

Millbrae’s one-day homelessness count found nine individuals, but police and other experts said statistics are likely higher, especially because Millbrae is at the end of the BART line, where unhoused individuals might find themselves kicked off.

“We are probably benefiting greatly from Millbrae’s program,” Kirshner said. “People who would probably walk here from Millbrae are receiving services here.”

The Millbrae program, funded by both the county and city, cost around $240,000. Councilmember Ricardo Ortiz said he didn’t think hiring new, Burlingame-specific LifeMoves employees was the right decision, but that the city should continue to work in tandem with its neighbors on a problem that “had no borders.”

“We need creative ways to work with the county and creative ways to work with our neighbors,” he said. “I think that we should share these services with other cities and find out ways to do it without adding further headcount to our city.”

Burlingame presently receives LifeMoves services through San Mateo County to help provide need-based services for unhoused individuals, but does not partner with them specifically like other cities in the area.

Sarah Fields, LifeMoves director of Community Engagement and Public Affairs, said that for the most part the organization feels it has adequate staff to provide for Burlingame’s needs, although timeliness could be an issue.

“There have been moments where the response time has not been as ideal from the perspective of the city and that could be something to think about,” she said.

She also talked about the distribution system of services in the county, which is residence-based. Oftentimes the most pressing service LifeMoves can provide is transporting homeless back to their county of residence, where they will be able to receive assistance more quickly.

Burlingame Police Chief Mike Matteucci said other police departments in the area use an in-house psychologist, who typically work in de-escalation of interpersonal conflict or areas of mental illness. While there could be some crossover, he said experts in the homelessness field might be best equipped to deal with continuing issues.

“Our officers do a really great job dealing with people experiencing homelessness,” he said. “I think LifeMoves and StarVista are great partners. Anything we can bring in to augment what we try to do would help for sure.”

Councilmember Emily Beach suggested that Burlingame’s resources might be better served digging deeper into what individuals are truly experiencing homelessness in “hidden” forms.

Beach suggested partnering with local school districts to understand how many students are experiencing homelessness, looking to the Bayfront, and including individuals who might be living in cars or other non-housing structures in future homelessness counts.

“Is this really about people who we see on the street, who we are concerned are unsheltered and we want to solve that problem? Or are we really willing to dig deeper, peel back the onion and ask how many people do we have asking homelessness in our community?” she said.

Note to readers: This story has been changed to correct and clarify a few details, including Fields' full title. LifeMoves works to transport people back to their home county. It is response time, not team.  

holly@smdailyjournal.com

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