San Mateo County focusing on help for homeless

Compared to years past, the county has far less wiggle room to operate within, and it will be key to establish a clear list of priority areas where services must be maintained, supervisors said. 

“I think we’ve got to start categorizing ‘need to have’ and ‘nice to have’ against the programs we have in the county,” Supervisor Jackie Speier said. 

Supervisor Ray Mueller echoed this sentiment, stating that it’s time to “stop thinking about new things,” but to evaluate and audit what should be kept and bolstered. 

While housing every person in the county is the ultimate goal for San Mateo County, priorities were emphasized on addressing the approximately 30 families currently on the waitlist for shelter. 

County Executive Mike Callagy said he and staff will spend the year on creating tangible ways to get each of those families into more stable shelter. 

“No kid in this county should be homeless and ... grow up in the backseat of a car or an RV or on the street,” Callagy said. “I’d challenge us to focus in on that issue on an ongoing basis.” 

Establishing workforce housing is also a current focus of county staff, which is looking to transform that San Mateo County Law Library property into a development to house between 60 and 120 residents, Ray Hodges, director of the county’s Department of Housing, said. 

The county is “pushing on a three-pronged approach for developing and creating housing for our employees,” Hodges said, including building housing and a down payment assistance program. Hopefully, he said, the support in housing employees can help with retention as well.

While the county hopes residents stay working in the county, getting young residents into the local job market is also a priority area, Callagy said. Work must be done to connect young people seeking jobs with open positions, even if that may be outside their intended field, Callagy said. 

One of the age groups with the highest rate of “poverty” are 18- to 24-year-olds who may be supported by their families but are not earning a livable wage or finding work quickly after graduating from school. 

Supervisor Lisa Gauthier said one of her goals is to create more opportunities for the next generation to become homeowners and grow old in San Mateo County. 

“If there’s any way to give this generation hope to stay in the community and region they call home, that would be something ideal and perfect for me,” Gauthier said. 

Economic trends

The local aspirations and goals of supervisors were contextualized by broader economic trends. 

Incomes are steadily increasing, but are largely just keeping pace with inflation, meaning the county isn’t seeing an increase in spending potential among residents, Chief Financial Officer Roberto Manchia said. These increases in incomes among households aren’t keeping up with rent prices, either. 

Throughout the county many residents are “rental burdened” or are paying more than 30% of their income on rent. In North Fair Oaks, 24% of the low-income residents fall into this designation, and in East Palo Alto, 23%. The proportion of residents paying over 50% of their income on rent is also significant, Manchia said. 

In addition to high rents, families are still struggling to find adequate and affordable child care, particularly for their children ages 2 and younger, Manchia said. 

Closing that gap is another priority of the county. Supervisors Speier and Gauthier have recently held town halls to further gauge the needs of families.

Unemployment in the county remains steady, but similar to many other urban areas throughout the state, the rates have not fully bounced back to pre-pandemic levels, Robert Eyler, an economic expert and professor at Sonoma State University, said at Tuesday’s retreat. 

There is an expected 4.4% of job growth between 2026 and 2030, Eyler said. This equates to approximately 26,000 more people working within the county. 

Industry rising to serve rich

Through 2040, the projected industries to rise in prominence within the county are those that serve wealthier residents, including outpatient health care, senior facilities focused on midrange to high-range wealth and luxury restaurants, private education and hotels to accommodate tourism forecasts, Eyler said.

Contrarily, public education and the life sciences industries are anticipated to be areas of concern in the coming decade. Tourism will become increasingly bifurcate, with establishments catering more and more to those that are “very value based or very luxury based,” Eyler said. 

This widening gap is seen across income levels of residents as well, Manchia said. High wage workers are growing their wealth faster than any other income category; it remains difficult for those earning low wages to increase their wealth. 

Low-income health risks

For low-income residents, health risks also remain higher than their wealthier counterparts. Discrepancies are also seen among Black, Latino and LGBTQIA+ residents, Health Officer Dr. Kismet Baldwin Santana said. 

Reported health trends showcase an “overall healthy county,” but discrepancies remain in access to care, despite the county’s support systems, Baldwin-Santana said.  

“We’re highly insured, but there’s a steady increase in residents that are having trouble seeing a physician, for whatever reason,” Baldwin-Santana said. “They’re covered, but they’re struggling to get the care they need.”

Whether it’s costs of co-pays or limited transportation, board President Noelia Corzo emphasized her desire to close the gap on residents who are in need of health services but are inhibited in connecting with physicians. 

Big picture ideas

The supervisors closed the session recapping their big-picture ideas for the county and appreciation for the work done on achieving these goals so far. 

San Mateo County’s success is in large part due its staff that has a “willingness to look for ‘yes’ in whatever question there is” Speier said. Looking ahead to an uncertain economic future and limited resources, this aspirational ideology will keep the county afloat, she said. 

“I am so grateful to the county executive team, the department heads, and all the employees in this county for putting compassion first,” Speier said. “Compassion is a key value that we use to view every issue.”