Local Imperial Valley organizations try to find solution for homeless crisis

Close to six million dollars in state funds could be headed to Imperial County to battle the homeless crisis.

The Imperial Valley Continuum of Care Council held a meeting with local organizations to demonstrate how they can apply for state funds to find solutions for homelessness.

Tony Phillips, a consultant for the county, said this kind of money doesn’t come around for the valley often.

“One of the first step solutions is, we stop leaving money on the table. There have, year after year after year, been opportunities if we were more competitive to leverage some state and federal resources. That $6 million that’s available this year is the first of many opportunities that we’ll have in the coming 18 months,” said Phillips.

Identifying mental health-related issues is a priority. “And they all have to be addressed together if we truly want to impact the challenges that we have in Imperial Valley,” said El Centro Police Department Executive Commander, Alvaro Ramirez.

To find their needs, the county must work with organizations that reach out to the homeless. Maribel Padilla, the founder of the Brown Bag Coalition, said, “They will talk to us. They will let us know their needs because they see us every day. They see us, that we care for them, that we’re trying to provide something. ”

It will take everyone being on the same page to solve the problem.
“We alone can’t do it. You know it takes groups to come together because everybody has different ideas, we all do different things,” said Monica McCain, a volunteer for Spread The Love charity.

The Imperial Valley Continuum of Care Council will hold another meeting this Wednesday to help organizations apply for the state funds.