Berkeley homeless advocates to host open house for new facility
BERKELEY (CBS SF) – A local homeless advocacy group announced this week that it's opening its new facility by hosting an open house for community members Thursday.
The Homeless Action Center (HAC) announced the opening of its new "Almost Home" safe haven on Haste Street in Berkeley this week and will celebrate by hosting an open at 11 a.m. Thursday.
When running, the safe haven will provide "temporary supportive housing" for up to seven homeless and disabled HAC clients who are in the process of securing Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits that will allow them to obtain permanent housing, according to a press release.
"SSI advocacy clients who are awaiting permanent supportive housing as determined by Alameda County's coordinated entry system and have pending SSI cases will be eligible for placement selection at Almost Home," said the press release.
HAC says it prioritizes the most at-risk individuals to provide housing assistance. They determine clients using factors like history of homelessness, age, veteran status, experience of domestic violence, disability, and medical vulnerability.
The facility opened after Alameda County's homeless population grew by 73% over the past five years.
The HAC has been operating in Berkeley since 1990. On top of running Almost Home and providing housing, the HAC also public benefits legal advocacy to assist unhoused and disabled members of the community in applying for local and federal programs such as General Assistance (GA), CalFresh (food stamps), Medi-Cal health insurance, Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants (CAPI), SSI, and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI).
The HAC has offices in South Berkeley (3126 Shattuck Avenue) and West Oakland (2601 San Pablo). Those in need can drop-in for services Monday-Thursday, 1-5 p.m. at both offices, as well as a telephone helpline (510-540-0878 or 510-695-2260).