Pasadena Homeless Outreach Team Receives Nearly $1 Million Grant for Mental Health Services

The city of Pasadena has received a $900,000 federal grant to support its substance abuse, housing, and mental health street outreach team. The Pasadena Outreach Response Team (PORT) was created in 2018 by combining members of several organizations, including Pasadena Public Health, Union Station Homeless Services, Pasadena Fire Department, and Huntington Health.

The team's approach is to take a long-term, proactive approach to build relationships with the community by providing case management, medical screenings, and other social services that build trust while they and clients work through the lengthy process of finding a permanent home. Since its inception, the team has connected with more than 1,500 people experiencing homelessness, enrolled 235 individuals in public health programs, scheduled and transported people to 249 clinical appointments, and helped transition 51 seniors and transitional-age youth into subsidized low-income or shared housing, according to a city press release.

PORT expanded in 2021 with funding from the Pasadena Police Department, which added a team to dispatch 911 calls and direct them to the outreach team rather than providing a police response. The grant funding comes via Congressional Directive Spending allocated by Rep. Judy Chu, D-Pasadena.

Pic Source: First Source (firstsourcemagazine.org)