San Jose needs millions of dollars it doesn’t have to clear homeless residents from city waterways and place them into temporary shelter. Officials are considering raiding an affordable housing fund to make it happen.
The city manager is proposing two options for the 2024-25 budget that would divert monies out of Measure E, an affordable housing fund, while facing a $50 million structural shortfall . One option would be to use all $35.6 million of available Measure E affordable housing dollars to clear out the unhoused to meet a state mandate and construct temporary shelters. The other option would be to divert $24.6 million and hope to keep $11 million for affordable housing with state grant funding.
The San Jose Housing and Community Development Commission will make recommendations to the City Council on both options on Thursday. Meanwhile, community leaders plan to protest the proposal before the council’s May 14 budget hearing.
The draft budget follows Mayor Matt Mahan’s council-approved March budget message that prioritizes addressing street homelessness and blight, increasing public safety and making San Jose easier to invest in.