NEXT STEPS PROGRAM In an e ort to bring mental health services together with homelessness resources, the Next Step Program was created through a Texas Health and Human Services Commission grant. Participants in the program will have access to caseworkers, health care professionals and housing coordinators.
DESCRIPTION A team of area organizations and caseworkers will partner to connect individ- uals with needed services in the community and with permanent housing.
Footing program. “It is very close to recovery support services; it is very close to behavioral health services. ... It is right next to Section 8 public housing for [the] elderly and disabled,” she said. “It is across the railroad tracks from the subsidized housing project run by Prospera Community Housing [Ser- vices], and it is a distance from any housing or school.” While the location is ideal, Stallings said it is outdated, and signi cant ren- ovation work would need to be com- pleted to ensure it was safe and could meet the needs of the program. The McKenna Foundation has awarded a small grant for operating expenses and pledged to provide some funds to acquire or renovate a space, Stallings said, but her team is still evaluating other options and has considered the Howard Johnson Hotel, located at 201 Loop 337. Connecting available resources In September, a new partnership between three nonpro t organiza- tions in Comal County received grant funding through the Texas Health and Human Services Commission that will be used to provide housing and mental health services for individuals experiencing homelessness. The partnership, called the Next Step Program, brings together the Cri- sis Center of Comal County, NB Hous- ing Partners, and the Comal County Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Center, or MHDD. The program was awarded approx- imately $1.7 million annually for the next seven years, Biesboer said. The group will be required to reapply peri- odically and could receive additional funding in the coming years. Biesboer and his team hired a hous- ing navigator who is working with local landlords and other a ordable housing options to develop relationships and nd stable homes for those who are ready to leave the shelter environment. “The ultimate goal is to secure
GOALS The goal of the program is to bring the shelter and housing services of the Crisis Center of Comal County and NB Housing Partners together with services provided by the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Center. Funding from the grant created sta ng opportunities for counselors and case managers.
ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED Crisis Center of Comal County, MHDD Hill Country, First Footing
FUNDING SOURCE Texas HHSC Healthy Community Collaborative
SOURCES: CRISIS CENTER OF COMAL COUNTY, NEXT STEPS PROGRAM COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
PEOPLE HELPED BY THE CRISIS CENTER OF COMAL COUNTY Since September 2021 they have provided services for 224 people.
housing for them within the commu- nity and then, even once they secure housing, continue to walk beside them for a period of time to ensure that that housing is sustainable [and] they’re doing well withwork,” he said. For many experiencing homeless- ness, rehousing is just the rst step to reintegrating into the community, and mental health services and coun- seling are often integral to nding sta- bility, Biesboer said. “We know that mental health plays a large role,” said Ellie Truan, shelter director for the crisis center. “Having MHDD as part of the team has been incredibly bene cial because not only are they educating us on how to bet- ter serve our clients and our residents, but they’re also available here to work with those residents.” Another key goal of the program is to gather data about the needs facing the community as it relates to homeless- ness so organizations and groups gain a better understanding of the services that are most needed, Truan said. Access to services, such as public transportation, local rehabilitation pro- grams and a ordable housing is lacking throughout Comal County, Truan said. Ultimately, Truan and Biesboer hope the collaboration will extend to include other local nonpro ts, church
While living in the apartments, a portion of each resident’s rent will be put into a savings account that they will receive access to upon graduating from the program, Cooper said. The goal of the community will be to provide residents with a stable place to live, access to healthy food, opportunities to learn about national and local assistance options, and nancial and career training. “The framework in which we give aid is in a three-tiered strategy that we call food for today, food for tomorrow, and then food for a lifetime,” he said. Though the rent has not yet been determined, Cooper said his team has begun accepting applications and is working with local nonpro t organiza- tions to nd candidates. “That opportunity to possibly live andworkwithin a community is some- thing that we desire for these partici- pants, and that will be a reminder for the city of New Braunfels that we need to have more housing that’s a ord- able,” Cooper said. “It’s a much big- ger movement and work than just 51 apartments run by the food bank.” Amid the ongoing e orts to serve individuals experiencing homeless- ness, nd stable housing options and increase access to other services, Stallings said it is important for the community to work together to nd solutions for ending homelessness. “Those who are experiencing home- lessness are just like you and I, and sometimes we see them as threats, and we take away that human side of people who are experiencing social sit- uations that are uncomfortable,” she said. “This is a community problem, and we need a community solution.”
groups and support organizations. “The biggest goal is to end home- lessness in Comal County,” Biesboer said. “I think it can happen. I think
we’re a county that can do it.” Building innovative housing
As rising housing costs in Central Texas push many area workers to live outside the city in which they work, the New Braunfels Food Bank and area nonpro ts are working to bring a more a ordable option to the city. In June 2021, food bank sta and representatives of local organiza- tions announced plans for the Apple Seeds Apartments, a $9 million apart- ment complex that will be located at 1530 S. Seguin Ave., New Braunfels. NB Housing Partners donated the land to be used for the construction of the New Braunfels Food Bank and the apartments, and the McKenna Foundation, Habitat for Humanity and the San Antonio Food Bank have been involved in the project. After several permitting delays, Eric Cooper, the San Antonio Food Bank President and CEO, said the project is in the nal phase that will pave the way for site work to begin this spring. The 51-unit property will provide housing at below-market-level rents for 24 to 36 months, Cooper said, and the project is one of the rst food bank- backed housing e orts in the nation. “It’s not a shelter, it’s not dealing with emergency situations. It’s really dealing with individuals that are work- ing in New Braunfels that are strug- gling with the a ordability of rent and the inability to gain equity,” Cooper said. “There is a real lack of inventory to meet the demand. Comal County, in its fast growth and increasing costs, has created an environment where many people can’t a ord to live and work in the same community.”
For more information, visit communityimpact.com .
The Apple Seeds Apartments will include 51 units at below-market-level rent, and residents will participate in a nancial and career training program.
25
NEW BRAUNFELS EDITION • APRIL 2022
Powered by FlippingBook