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Berkeley City Leaders Seek To Streamline Homeless Services

BERKELEY (KCBS) — Berkeley city leaders began looking at how money is spent on homeless services on Tuesday after a recent report concluded it is not being done efficiently. The vision for a new system is a drastic change from the current approach.

Berkeley City Leaders Seek To Streamline Homeless Services

Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates said the report commissioned by the City Council pointed out a lack of coordination among homeless service providers with far too much duplication of paperwork. It also calls for the creation of a central intake system.

"We think by taking and ringing out some of the inefficiencies we will be able to spend more money on rapidly housing people, rather than simply having them bounce between various providers.

But Seamus Castablanco, who has been homeless in Berkeley for 14 years, said that having fewer doors isn't the answer and that it would be more helpful if the city reinstituted its daytime drop-in center.

"You could get blankets when you lose yours, and you can get clothing and food and there's people around to help you," he said.

Bates said a central intake center would probably be located downtown or somewhere along Telegraph Avenue.

Currently, the city spends about $3 million per year on homeless services for approximately 650 to 800 people.

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