How many homeless are being helped?

In the Nov. 27, 2023 Daily Journal article, “Burlingame looks to Millbrae for homeless help,” Jeremy Kirshner, assistant to the city manager, was quoted as stating during a Burlingame City Council study session that “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.” And Mayor Brownrigg applauded Millbrae’s success stating “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.”

Unfortunately, either Burlingame officials don’t understand the data presented by LifeMoves, have not done their due diligence or are intentionally parroting misleading information to push for funding of a false narrative.

During the last update to the Millbrae City Council on Oct. 24, LifeMoves stated that from January through September 2023, they were able to provide 124 bed nights which is not equivalent to sheltering 124 people. For example, they could have merely provided 24 people with five nights of housing and one person with four nights. And despite the false equivalence, I am sad to say that I have not seen LifeMoves, the city of Burlingame nor the Journal provide the much needed clarification and transparency. Without an honest dialogue, the only winners will be LifeMoves as they waste more taxpayer dollars.

Grace Xuereb

Burlingame