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programs. All of these emergency programs provide both an outreach and a direct service function. Information, Referral, Outreach and emergency Services The primary source of county -wide information and referral is Eden Information and Referral, which is Alameda County's 211 provider. Many homeless service providers in Alameda County provide 24 -hour hotlines that provide information about their own services and referrals. There are five organizations in Alameda County that provide regular street outreach to homeless people, including two mobile health and mental health teams (Health Care for the Homeless and the Community Crisis Response Team). These programs target homeless people who are living on the streets, or in other places unsuited for habitation, and seek to provide immediate services and link them with ongoing services and shelter or housing. Health Care for the Homeless provides support services including food assistance, financial benefits counseling, transportation, and employment assistance as well as referrals for medical and dental services, housing or food assistance. Two primary sources of emergency services are food programs and drop -in centers. Food programs provide meals to homeless people and to housed people who are hungry. Some food programs provide hot meals at the site. Others provide grocery bags that can be taken away or vouchers to purchase food. There are more than 150 sites in Alameda County that provide food for homeless people. The majority of these programs are in the North County area. Not all food programs are open every day. Multi Service Centers (drop -in centers) provide a place for homeless people to go during the day. They often provide on -site services as well as referrals to other agencies. They generally offer services which include providing homeless people with an address, access to phones, showers, clothing and assistance with other basic needs. Most of these are located in the North County area. However, they also exist in Livermore and Fremont. Emergency Shelter Emergency shelters often draw from a wider geographic area than do food and drop -in programs. There are now approximately 36 shelters in the County. Allowable stays in shelters average 45 days and range from 30 days to 6 months. One hundred additional beds are available in the cold weather months at the winter shelter on the Oakland Army Base. An additional 45 winter shelter beds for families are available in the South County area. Transitional Housing and Services: An Intermediary Step for Stabilization Transitional Housing For many, exiting homelessness requires addressing chronic life issues, such as AOD problems or domestic violence and saving enough money to obtain permanent housing. Transitional housing with services such as job training, financial planning assistance and counseling for AOD or mental health issues provides an intermediate step for many to recover from homelessness and to develop life skills that will enable them to move to permanent housing with lower risk of repeated Strategic Plan FY2010 FY2014 City of Pleasanton Page 25