Riverside County has identified hotels and motels with available units for unsheltered homeless individuals to provide emergency temporary housing during the “stay at home” state order. The temporary housing is part of a county program that includes case management, medical and wrap-around services.
“These much-needed beds will get our most vulnerable homeless residents into safe housing because they need the most protection,” Chairman V. Manuel Perez, Fourth District Supervisor said. “This will continue to slow and halt the spread of this deadly virus.”
Eligible unsheltered homeless individuals include those who are 65 and older, pregnant, have a serious chronic health condition such as heart disease, diabetes, or lung disease, or have a compromised immune system. Homeless individuals who are ill or have been diagnosed with COVID-19 will be housed through a different system.
Eligible clients can be referred to temporary hotel and motel housing by calling the HomeConnect hotline at 1-800-498-8847. The hotels and motels are located throughout Riverside County.
The program is offered through the Housing Authority of Riverside County. County officials will work with local homeless providers and the hotel and motel sites to identify homeless individuals who meet the eligibility requirements and to coordinate temporary housing.
Efforts to identify permanent housing are ongoing and will continue alongside the temporary hotel and motel housing. This is the latest in a series of precautionary and preventive measures taken by Riverside County to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and protect the county’s most vulnerable populations.
