More San Diegans Aware of Supportive Housing

Editor’s Note: The following is a news release from the County of San Diego’s Health and Human Services Agency.

San Diegans’ views and acceptance of supportive housing are slowly changing for the positive, thanks in great part to the County’s Housing Matters campaign. 

A new survey by the County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) revealed 27 percent of local residents had heard about supportive housing last year, an 11 percentage point increase compared to 2010.

“It’s great to see the Housing Matters campaign is working and more people are aware of supportive housing,” said Piedad García, Director of HHSA’s Mental Health Services for Adults and Older Adults. “We took one step forward to reduce the stigma and discrimination around mental illness and homelessness, but there is still more to be done.”

In San Diego, there are more than 9,000 homeless people with an estimated 33 percent suffering from mental illness, a major contributing factor to their homelessness.

Individuals with mental illness are much more likely to become homeless than the general population because untreated mental illness can disrupt their ability to maintain relationships, hold jobs, or keep their apartments or homes.

Supportive housing, typically integrated into larger affordable housing developments, links homeless San Diegans with mental illness to a permanent place to live as a first step towards stability and recovery. In addition to getting a home, supportive housing clients also get mental health services, primary health care, alcohol and drug services, and social services.

The goal is to help homeless individuals with mental illness gain stability and live more productive lives. Tenants hold their own leases and are responsible for a portion of their rent.

Like other illnesses such as diabetes or heart disease, mental illness can be treated with regular access to health care. However, treatment is seldom successful when people are living in shelters or on the street.  

On the question of whether residents would mind having a supportive housing development within a half mile of their home, 71 percent said they had no objections in 2011 compared to 64 percent before the Housing Matters campaign started. This campaign is part of the County’s Live Well, San Diego! initiative, which aims to improve the physical and mental well being of local residents.

“Opposition to supportive housing is usually the result of inaccurate information and misperceptions,” García said. “Supportive housing is not an emergency or temporary shelter or treatment facility. Supportive housing gives people a home and home is where recovery begins.”

For more information about supportive housing, the Housing Matters campaign, or to view the complete results of the survey, visit HousingMattersSD.org.