Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) Program Round 6
The Office of Care Coordination, serving as the Administrative Entity for the Orange County Continuum of Care (CoC) and the County of Orange (County), has successfully worked with the cities of Anaheim, Irvine, and Santa Ana to submit the HHAP Program Round 6 application by the August 29, 2025, deadline. The HHAP Program provides recipients with flexible funding to address immediate homelessness challenges while supporting regional coordination and long-term systems planning. Eligible applicants include counties, CoCs, and large cities. Similar to HHAP Round 5, this year’s application process was rooted in collaboration. HHAP Program funding has been instrumental in strengthening regional capacity to address the complex needs of individuals and families experiencing homelessness through enhanced coordination, expanded housing opportunities, and improved access to supportive services.
In support of the HHAP Round 6 application and to guide the development of the Regionally Coordinated Homelessness Action Plan, the Office of Care Coordination and the cities of Santa Ana and Anaheim hosted Community Listening Sessions in the month of July 2025. These sessions provided a platform for diverse stakeholders to share their experiences and insights, including individuals with current or past lived experience of homelessness (people with lived experience), service providers, affordable housing developers, and community members. Together, these meetings fulfilled the HHAP stakeholder engagement requirement, ensuring that the regional strategy reflects community perspectives and priorities. By working together with the cities of Anaheim, Irvine, and Santa Ana, the County of Orange (County) continues to demonstrate its commitment to a coordinated, regional approach to preventing and ending homelessness. The submission of the HHAP Round 6 application marks another step toward advancing innovative, collaborative solutions that improve housing stability and support the most vulnerable members of the community.
State Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) 2024 Award
The State of California Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) Program 2024 Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) was released on December 31, 2024, with an estimated $1,604,350 allocation for the Orange County CoC for three annual grant cycles (estimated $534,784 annually). In March 2025, the Office of Care Coordination completed the application process for this funding. In June 2025, the Office of Care Coordination received notification that the 2024 ESG application was approved with an award of $702,586 for the first annual grant cycle. ESG program funds can be used to support activities such as street outreach, emergency shelter operations, rapid rehousing, and homelessness prevention. The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) receives ESG funding from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and allocates these funds to eligible CoCs.
Services Coordination, Permanent Housing Delivery, and Prevention and Shelter Diversion Services Request For Proposals (RFP)
In Fall 2025, the Office of Care Coordination released an RFP seeking proposals that address homelessness in Orange County. This RFP encouraged providers to propose a range of programs that could include services, permanent housing, and prevention. The Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) funds will support programs selected through the RFP. This RFP is intended to emphasize programs that demonstrate clear and direct channels to permanent housing, ranging from effective direct services to development activities that create new affordable and Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) units for people experiencing homelessness. The Office of Care Coordination is looking forward to working with providers to support successful implementation of programs designed through this RFP process.
National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) Conference
From June 30, 2025, to July 2, 2025, staff from the Office of Care Coordination had the privilege of attending this year’s National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) National Conference on Ending Homelessness in Washington D.C. The conference brought together thought leaders, advocates, providers, and people with lived experience from communities around the country to discuss best practices and share new approaches. The conference provided the opportunity to gain insight into how other communities are addressing homelessness. The Office of Care Coordination attended thought-provoking workshops on a range of topics including housing market navigation, federal policy, harnessing the promise of coordinated entry, and the intersection of homelessness and immigration.
Commission to Address Homelessness Updates
New Appointments
The Commission to Address Homelessness (Commission) works in collaboration with the County of Orange (County), city governments, business sector, philanthropic organizations, community organizations, faith-based organizations, health care, public safety, and other interested stakeholders to address the County’s initiatives surrounding homelessness.
On September 23, 2025, the Board of Supervisors approved five appointments to the Commission in the following seats: Business Representative; Central Service Planning Area Representative; South Service Planning Area Representative; Faith-based Community Representative; and a Philanthropic Leader Representative. Each seat will serve a two-year team from September 23, 2025, to September 22, 2027.
Susan Parks was re-appointed and will serve as the Business Representative. Ms. Parks is the Chief Executive officer (CEO) of Orange County United Way and leads the United to End Homelessness initiative; engaging government, health care, non-profit, and philanthropic leaders to drive change. She has led a team to educate 6,000 residents through, Homeless 101, trained 1,000 homeless champions, and helped secure permanent housing for nearly 4,000 people. Ms. Parks’ strategic leadership and coalition building has mobilized funding, resources, and public will to address homelessness in Orange County.
Benjamin Vasquez will serve as the Central Service Planning Area Representative and is a life-long Santa Ana Resident, educator, and public servant with over 21 years of experience teaching local youth. As Ward 2 City Council member and Mayor Pro Tem of Santa Ana, Mr. Vasquez has championed affordable housing, rent control, and immigration rights while securing funding for parks and youth programs.
Debra Rose was re-appointed and will continue to serve as South Service Planning Area Representative. Ms. Rose has over 30 years of municipal government experience, advancing compassionate balanced solutions to ending homelessness. Ms. Rose has led efforts to fund local non-profits, partner with affordable housing developers and hire dedicated outreach staff to connect unhoused residents to resources. Ms. Rose is looking to activate her extensive regional network to enable collaboration across government, business, faith, and non-profit groups.
Ivan Pitts will serve as the Faith-based Community Representative. As the Pastor of Second Baptist Church, he has partnered with multiple organizations to host resource fairs and community services for underserved populations. Under his leadership, the Second Baptist Church hosted the first OC Same-Day Solutions Fair. In addition to his lived experience of homelessness, pastoral leadership, and military experience, his collaborations with civic, faith, and educational institutions demonstrates his ability to unite stakeholders to address homelessness.
Benjamin Hurst has a Doctor of Social Work from University of Southern California specializing in Ending Chronic Homelessness. Dr. Hurst was re-appointed and will serve as the Philanthropic leader Representative. He brings executive level leadership in homeless services. Dr. Hurst co-founded the 325-bed Anaheim Emergency Shelter, completed new construction for 70 units of permanent supportive housing in Anaheim, and is now launching a $20 million research and program design center. With his extensive career at The Salvation Army, Dr. Hurst is a respected leader in the faith-based community and is hoping to use his relationships to address homelessness.
Continuum of Care (CoC) Builds Notice of Funding Opportunity
On July 22, 2024, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced approximately $175 million in funding through the through the Continuum of Care Builds (CoC Builds) Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) – a first of its kind funding for new construction, acquisition, or rehabilitation of permanent supportive housing (PSH). On November 20, 2024, the County of Orange (County), as the Collaborative Applicant for the Orange County CoC, with collaboration from Jamboree Housing Corporation (Jamboree Housing), submitted the final CoC Builds Application to HUD.
On May 16, 2025, HUD sent a letter via email to CoC Builds Applicants sharing that a CoC Builds NOFO was published on May 16, 2025, and that the NOFO superseded the CoC Builds NOFO published July 19, 2024, and includes several changes. Applications received before the publication of the May 16, 2025, NOFO were not considered for funding unless resubmitted under the May 16, 2025, published CoC Builds NOFO. On May 20, 2025, HUD announced the publication of the CoC Builds NOFO via the email through the Office of Special Needs Assistance Programs. On June 25, 2025, the County submitted the final CoC Builds Project Listing to HUD which included a project application from Jamboree Housing called Costa Mesa Senior.
On September 5, 2025, HUD released a new CoC Builds NOFO which superseded the NOFO published on May 16, 2025, and made $75 million available in funding. Through the new CoC Builds NOFO, HUD was seeking applications for the construction of new PSH units designed to serve the elderly and individuals with physical disabilities in a medical respite setting. The submission deadline for the CoC Builds NOFO was Friday, September 12, 2025.
With a one-week turnaround for an application submission, the Office of Care Coordination worked with Jamboree Housing to make needed updates to the Orange County CoC Builds NOFO Application in accordance with the September 5, 2025, CoC Builds NOFO. On September 11, 2025, the County submitted the final CoC Builds NOFO application to HUD, which included a project application from Jamboree Housing called Costa Mesa Senior.
Continuum of Care (CoC) Strategic Plan
The CoC Board adopted a CoC Strategic Plan at the December 18, 2024, meeting, inclusive of key strategic aims, objectives, strategies, and actions, as a living framework for collectively moving forward the CoC’s vision for addressing homelessness in Orange County. Following its adoption, the CoC Strategic Plan has been further refined and led by the Office of Care Coordination, CoC Board Officers, and ACStrategies consultant. Feedback from CoC Committees prompted a full day working session on April 30, 2025, to streamline priorities and clarify roles.
At the June 25, 2025, CoC Board meeting, seven Year 1 Strategies were introduced, including staff training assessments, updated written standards, and enhanced leadership opportunities for individuals with lived experience. The implementation start date for Year 1 Strategies was established for October 1, 2025, to allow time for finalizing the Strategic Goals used to guide implementation as well as securing logistics for the project management of the CoC Strategic Plan.
On August 27, 2025, the CoC Board unanimously approved Strategic Goals focused on system performance, lived experience engagement and cross-system coordination. These Strategic Goals were informed by data from Orange County United Way’s 2-1-1 Orange County (211OC), as the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) Lead. The prioritized Year 1 Strategies were approved at the September 24, 2025, meeting of the CoC Board, and the CoC Strategic Plan launched on October 1, 2025. A timeline of key activities of the CoC Strategic Plan can be referenced below.
 Continuum of Care Fiscal and Resource Mapping Initiative
The Office of Care Coordination, as the Collaborative Applicant and Administrative Entity for the Orange County CoC, was asked by the CoC Board to undertake a fiscal and resource mapping initiative to better understand what funding and resources are present in the Orange County homeless service system, whether any gaps in funding exist, and how to strategically invest in homeless service programming, including emergency shelter and permanent housing resources, through future funding opportunities. A strategy regarding the need for thorough fiscal and resource mapping was also included in the CoC Strategic Plan, as a prioritized area of focus.
To move this initiative forward, the Office of Care Coordination identified Homebase as the consulting group with a clear understanding of activities related to this work and experience completing similar mapping exercises for other communities. On August 26, 2025, the Orange County Board of Supervisors approved a contract between the Office of Care Coordination and Homebase to provide essential technical assistance and consulting services in support of the fiscal and resource mapping of the CoC, primarily focusing on the CoC’s key funding sources: CoC Program, Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG), and Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) Program funding. Homebase will roll out the project in a five-phased approach, which will include outlining a timeline of activities, developing an ad hoc to guide and support the initiative, creating avenues for community outreach and stakeholder engagement, collecting and analyzing information received, and providing a final report of the findings of the fiscal and resource mapping exercise.
On September 24, 2025, as part of Phase 1, Homebase provided a presentation at the CoC Board meeting to kick off the initiative, highlighting an initial survey that would be shared with the CoC Board to understand the goals and priorities envisioned. Under Phase 2, a Fiscal and Resource Mapping Ad Hoc is in the process of being established. The Office of Care Coordination will explore opportunities for the findings of the fiscal and resource mapping of the CoC to be shared, as a way to further understanding of the funding landscape in Orange County.
Grand openings of Miraflores and Salida del Sol Apartments
 The Office of Care Coordination’s CES team was grateful to attend the grand opening of Salida del Sol (left) and Miraflores (right).
Salida Del Sol is a unique partnership between the County of Orange, the City of San Juan Capistrano, Jamboree Housing Corporation, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and other partners. The affordable housing complex is part of a development that also includes a new City Hall for the City of San Juan Capistrano. The complex contains general affordable units made available to low-income residents of San Juan Capistrano, as well as 40 units for people experiencing homelessness, referred through the CES. This includes 10 units for Veterans and 24 units for people with a qualifying mental health condition(s) verified by the Orange County Health Care Agency.
In partnership with the City of Anaheim, National Core, and other partners, the County ensured eight households with a qualifying and verified mental health disability ended their homelessness by moving into Miraflores with a referral from the CES. This development included general affordable units as well.
Any future vacancies that were originally referred through the CES, at both Salida del Sol and Miraflores, will be filled through CES again.
Pelican Harbor Finishes Lease Up
The Office of Care Coordination partnered with the Orange County Housing Authority, Orange County Health Care Agency (HCA), Jamboree Housing Corporation and other partners to assist in the successful lease up of Pelican Harbor Apartments in Huntington Beach. The 42-unit complex includes 33 units of Permanent Supportive Housing. The 33 units were referred through Coordinated Entry and were targeted for seniors experiencing homelessness, including 21 eligible seniors with a qualifying and verified mental health condition through the HCA. As vacancies become available, units will be filled through referrals from the CES.
New Coordinated Entry System (CES) Training for Access Points
The Office of Care Coordination is excited to announce a new training module on the Orange County CES Academy, CES How-To Guide for Access Points. This module is designed for staff and program managers at CES Access Points.
This module focuses on a brief overview of how to perform specific tasks in CES through instructional videos. It builds on the conceptual understanding of CES from the previously released CES 101 training. The module covers topics such as documentation, prioritization, the bed reservation system, the match and eligibility process, and a variety of technical instruction. CES partners can access the training here.
Coordinated Entry System (CES) Has Gone Social
The Orange County CES has created an Instagram account. The account will cover topics related to Coordinated Entry including frequently asked questions, myths of CES, technical assistance, as well as announcements from the Office of Care Coordination. The content will be for anyone who is looking to learn about Coordinated Entry or improve their understanding of Coordinated Entry. Be sure to follow by scanning the QR code or clicking here: OC_CES.
Orange County Same Day Solutions Fairs
The Office of Care Coordination hosted the second OC Same-Day Solutions Fair on July 24, 2025, at the Saddleback Church in Lake Forest. A total of 120 unduplicated households participated and a total of 585 services were provided. This event was aimed to connect individuals experiencing homelessness with critical services that promote stability, empowerment, and long-term housing solutions.
In addition, the Office of Care Coordination hosted the third OC Same-Day Solutions event on September 25, 2025, at the HUB Resource Center in Orange. A total of 236 unduplicated households participated and a total of 664 services were provided.
County and State Departments, alongside community-based organizations, provided comprehensive support to help reduce barriers and improve access to essential resources. Additionally, the events expanded access to Homeless Court, offering individuals the opportunity to resolve outstanding infractions, misdemeanors, and warrants—an important step toward regaining stability. There was a wide range of representatives from the following departments during both events: Social Service Agency, Orange County Clerk-Recorder, Orange County Health Care Agency, Orange County Child Support Services, Orange County Public Defenders, and Orange County District Attorney, and Orange County Community Resources.
The Office of Care Coordination would like to express utmost appreciation to all the partners who have made these events possible, and looks forward to coordinating future OC Same-Day Solutions Fairs across Orange County.
 Annual Monitoring
The Office of Care Coordination provides annual monitoring to 19 shelter programs countywide to ensure adherence to both Federal and State funding regulations, as well as compliance with the County of Orange’s Standards of Care for Emergency Shelter Providers (Standards of Care). The goal of the annual monitoring process is to ensure quality assurance in the operation of emergency shelters. Through the monitoring process, the Office of Care Coordination is committed to offering technical assistance to program providers while reviewing their services, operations, and activities. To support program providers ahead of the scheduled monitoring, the Office of Care Coordination held a training on August 19, 2025, to review the monitoring process, required documentation, and recurring concerns identified in the previous monitoring cycle, providing an opportunity to better prepare. This training will be offered on an annual basis to continue providing technical assistance and support.
The Office of Care Coordination is currently conducting the first set of monitoring for the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 Four (4) programs have already been monitored, and the 15 remaining shelter programs will be monitored by the end of fiscal year.
Release of Request for Proposals (RFP): County Emergency Shelter Operations and Services at Bridges at Kraemer Place and Yale Navigation Center
On September 8, 2025, the Office of Care Coordination released a Request for Proposals (RFP)_ to invite qualified organizations to submit proposals to provide Emergency Shelter Operations and Services (ESOS) at Bridges at Kraemer Place and Yale Navigation Center. The RFP is seeking one or two Respondents to operate two different County Programs:
Bridges at Kraemer Place located in Anaheim and serving the North Service Planning Area
Yale Navigation Center located in Santa Ana and serving the Central Service Planning Area
The Programs went out for bid to ensure the County continues to fund programs that assist participants experiencing homelessness in accessing the most appropriate services and resources across, including behavioral health, healthcare, local benefits and mainstream services, housing navigation, and providing advocacy and support as necessary. Bridges at Kraemer Place and Yale Navigation Center both play a big role within the Orange County’s Homeless System of Care and have been actively operating for years.
OC Outreach and Engagement
As of July 1, 2025, 56 Full Time Employees (FTEs) from the OC Outreach and Engagement (O&E), transitioned from the Orange County Health Care Agency (HCA) to the County Executive Office’s Office of Care Coordination (OCC), marking a significant milestone in the County of Orange’s ongoing efforts to enhance support for individuals experiencing unsheltered homelessness. This transition into OCC was celebrated with a welcome event that brought together team members from both OC O&E and OCC. The event also unveiled a refreshed identity for the newly rebranded OC O&E program, featuring a new logo and green uniforms that replaced the former blue shirts.
As part of this new chapter, Kevin Alexander joined the team as the OC Outreach and Engagement Manager. With years of experience managing community-based programs, Kevin’s leadership is expected to play a key role in guiding the OC O&E forward and fostering continued collaboration across systems of care.
The OC O&E remains deeply committed to its core mission: meeting individuals where they are, building trust, and providing direct, field-based support and critical connections to homeless services. The team continues to strengthen relationships with community agencies to enhance collaboration and improve service delivery. With a new structure, a new look, and a renewed focus, OC O&E is prepared to address the impact of homelessness in Orange County, in partnership with our community allies, with purpose and effect.
 
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