According to the New York Times, San Francisco affordable housing cost around $750,000 to build per unit, for a two-bedroom apartment. The average costs of construction in San Francisco is 13 percent higher than in New York, 60 percent more expensive than Chicago, and 75 percent more than in Houston.

The high cost is attributed to of course the land, as well as the construction workers which earn about $90 an hour on average, and about a quarter of the cost go towards government fees, permits, and consulting companies.

And a good amount also goes towards attorney fees to deal with all the paperwork which can typically tie up property development for years.

The image above is of 1064 – 68 Mission St. in San Francisco. Here are the details of that project:

• 258 units (studios)
  • 156 units for chronic homeless people
  • 100 units for homeless seniors
  • 2 manager units
• $160M to build
  • $144M development
  • $0 land (city owned and donated, $36M value)
  • $16M for service center
• $625K per unit ($760K w/land)
• 5 years (press release to keys)

This is a beautiful building. But San Francisco has over 5,180 unsheltered homeless, according to a 2019 count. San Francisco will need at least 20 more buildings just as big to handle their homeless population – that is if it hasn’t grown in the past 2 years since the count.

Citizens Again will cost substantially less and will be built to safely accommodate much larger populations with more services, at a lower cost.

By building outside the urban core, and by building a single location, Citizens Again can utilize economies of scale to bring down the overall costs. From the early conceptual estimates, it’s believed the entire City – which will have a capacity of up to 150,000 population – will cost a total of $3 billion. That breaks down to approximately $60,000 per unit (about 50,000 total units). This also includes costs for services, on-site hospital, healthcare, and much more.

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I showed them a picture of the city, and in less than a minute, I explained the mission of this effort, the features and the amenities of the city, and what I was hoping to achieve. They quickly understood it, and latched onto many of my ideas and beliefs that I didn’t mention to them – so I knew there was validity in this idea.

Their own words are a stark contradiction to what most people think of the homeless: drug addicts that want to live on the streets, and this is the life that they want. Watch the video for the transcription of the conversations below, and you’ll understand that the homeless are human beings that need a second chance in life.

Testimonial Transcription

Woman 1: Yeah I’d be interested in getting off for me and my dog to have shelter and away from the elements and feeling safe.
Duane: Yeah and you think other people would be interested?
Woman 1: I think there are a lot of people that would be interested.

Duane: Now, would you live there?
Man 1: Yes! In a New York minute! Yes! I’d live up here, right on the tenth floor.
Duane: Do you think other people would like to live there?
Man 1: Yeah, I know a lot of people that would like to live there.

Woman 2: It’s a beautiful program, and Betty Jean Jeffries will agree and help support this.

Duane: What do you think about the idea?
Man 2: I think it’s a good idea I think you know homeless get off drugs and give them self-esteem to become productive citizens.
Duane: Yeah, would you want to live there?
Man 2: Of course! I would trade drugs for a place
Duane: Yeah, trade drugs. Okay and you think other people would want to live there too?
Man 2: Of course! There’s lots of people asking how do they get into a place and yet Navigator doesn’t help them as much.
Duane: Okay great. Thank you.

Woman 3: I’ve been stalked and terrorized on the streets and now I’m being terrorized where I live at a board and care, and this would be very nice to me and I’d appreciate something like this.
Duane: And it’d have room for your little friend there too.
Woman 3: You know if it’s safe and secure it’s an okay thing to do.

Duane: Okay so sir, would you be interested in living in the city here?
Man 3: Yes, yes I would. I think it’s a great idea. I’d be something good for the homeless it would keep their mind busy. And they’d have activities there, they’d have things to do, they wouldn’t have to go too far.

Woman 4: I think it would be great and I would want to live there because it would give someone another chance because everyone’s that homeless isn’t it just drug addicts or you know mentally crazy. People will have things to happen they have people that pass away or you know a lot of tragedies that happen they cause people to be homeless. And it would be a great thing to have a second chance.

Duane: What do you think? Would you want to live there?
Man 4: Yes I would like to live here any place that has a roof over my head. You know, I used to have a car, you know my car got impounded. My son’s Godfather you know he’d like to (unintelligible)…
Duane: So you would live there?
Man 4: Yeah (unintelligible)…

Duane: So what do you think about the program?
Man 5: I’m down.
Duane: So you think you’d live there?
Man 5: Yeah.
Duane: You think other people might be interested too?
Man 5: I’d get a couple of friends of mine (unintelligible)…
Duane: What about it sounds good for you?
Man 5: Get off the streets.

Duane: Ok. Great. What do you think?
Woman 5: All right yes. So this is what I think. I think this is a very valid reason because this is way the area would be secure and you can house them in different sections and be able to take care of them and meet their needs in that within that development. I think you should really look at this.
Duane: Would you want to live there?
Woman 5: Oh I definitely want to live here in a secure area!
Duane: Yeah. Do you think other people would like that too?
Woman 5: Of course, of course! But you know what I think it is, is that some people don’t even understand that those ARE the needs that they need to be met and so I think that that it’s important to teach them on how to go about living a better life. And I think here in America we’re not doing that. But if we teach him, they’ll come. They’ll come!

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Housing First is a permanent supportive housing program that is considered the “best practice” for governments and service agencies to use in their fight to end chronic homelessness. It’s used in X states and endorsed by the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH).

The primary goal of Housing First is to get homeless people into permanent, long-term housing. It differs in other shelters and housing programs, as it doesn’t require sobriety, drug treatment, psychiatric counseling or medications, or any service participation. However, supportive services are offered if the participant is interested.

Housing units are typically scattered around towns and cities, working with private landlords. The only requirements are that participants are required to pay 30% of the rent, which is usually paid for by Social Security benefits; and participants must meet with case managers twice monthly.

Research Findings for Housing First

There is strong evidence that Housing First works:

• Reduces homelessness (Palepu 2013, Tsemberis 2000, Gulcur 2003)
• Reduces hospital utilization among individuals with persistent mental illness and problems with substance abuse and addiction (Cochrane-Stergiopoulos 2015, Fitzpatrick-Lewis 2011, Montgomery 2013, Nelson 2007)
• Reduces costs associated with hospitalizations and treatment for individuals with persistent mental illness and substance abuse problems (Srebnik 2013, Urban-Cunningham 2009)
• Decreases costs to emergency departments (Ly 2015)
• Decreases costs to shelters (Stergiopoulos 2015, Ly 2015)
• Decreases utilization of psychiatric hospitals for formerly homeless individuals with mental illness (Gulcur 2003)
• Cost less (generally) than programs that require sobriety or treatment before providing housing (Gulcur 2003)
• Improves housing stability for people with mental disorders (Stergiopoulos 2015, Palepu 2013, Tsemberis 2000)
• Improves housing stability and decrease hospitalizations among homeless veterans (Montgomery 2013)
• Improves mental health and well-being (Nelson 2007, Tsemberis 2012)
• Improves participants’ functioning in the community when programs have strong case management components (Cochrane-Stergiopoulos 2015)
• Significantly improves the higher quality of life than non-participants, as well as greater safety and comfort in their new dwellings (Patterson 2013)
• Increases treatment for substance abuse and addiction (Nelson 2007, Tsemberis 2000).
• Alcohol usage findings are mixed. One study indicates the use of alcohol and other substances declines among Housing First participants (Kirst 2015), while another indicates that substance use-related outcomes do not differ significantly between participants and non-participants (Somers 2015)

Examples of Success

Results/Findings from Housing First Studies:

2006 cost study[1] with 150 chronically homeless individuals in a Denver, CO Housing First program

Charlotte, NC study[2] with 85 chronically homeless individuals

Cost Comparison of Housing First vs. living on streets

Seattle, WA – 95 chronically homeless individuals with severe alcohol problems with health care use were studied to analyze the cost while living on the streets, then while in a Housing First program.[3]

• $86k living on streets
• $42k while living in Housing First Program
• That’s a 51% cost reduction

Orange County, CA – an in-depth report analyzed the costs of 252 chronically homeless individuals on the streets, and in various housing programs, including Housing First programs.[4]

• Average cost per person:
  • Living on streets = $100,759
  • Permanent supportive housing = $51,587
  • That’s a 49% cost reduction
• Average costs for 10% most costly:
  • Living on streets = $439,787
  • Permanent supportive housing = $55,332
  • That’s an 87% cost reduction

With so much evidence-based research illustrating success with the Housing First program, why are there still so many homeless in America?

If you read the Citizens Again proposal to building a single location, you’ll see that many of the great things Housing First provides, the Citizens Again City will provide as well, but on a much larger, more cost-effective scale.

Read through the Citizens Again website, or stay tuned for many more blog posts to explain.

[1] https://shnny.org/uploads/Supportive_Housing_in_Denver.pdf

[2] https://www.citylab.com/equity/2015/05/the-case-for-giving-homes-to-the-homeless/392696/

[3] https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/183666

[4] https://www.unitedwayoc.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Orange-County-Cost-Study-Homeless-Executive-Summary.pdf

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