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mentions that 130 people lost their homes, which was probably due to the housing crisis and the economic downturn, and there are not any services in the City to support them. In terms of supportive and transitional housing, Ms. Dennis stated that she was so glad that staff brought pictures of the Sojourner House. She suggested a visit to Carmen Avenue in Livermore, which is like an apartment complex across from the library; a very nice living environment for the folks there, some of whom are disabled and some have children, and a nice alternative to living in a car. She stated that in Pleasanton, there are organized services for seniors in terms of great senior housing and a Senior Center that is able to deliver services more easily to people who are housed in an organized environment. Ms. Dennis stated that the people they have the most difficulty with are people who live by themselves who become disoriented and really cannot take care of themselves. She added that even her own children have friends who have become homeless when a parent moved out of town with a boyfriend, and the children would go from house to house. She stated that they sometimes stayed with them, and at other times with others, and she would suggest that they call the County if they ran out of places to stay because there was really no one they could go to or that she could refer them to in their school district, for instance, other than perhaps a counselor who could really help them. Ms. Dennis stated that this is a great opportunity to say there are places now. She added that Pat Belding, founder of Citizens for a Caring Community, is in the audience and is familiar with churches in Livermore who provide warming centers for homeless folks; but it is not as organized and as professional as it could be. She indicated that it is a great opportunity for the City of Pleasanton to do outreach to professional services providers to make sure the City gets organized, well -run facilities for people who have the need in this community. She stated that she strongly supports staff's recommendation. Samantha Burrows, Director of Homeless and Family Support Services at Tri- Valley Haven, stated that she is responsible for overseeing the Sojourner House. She indicated that there is a huge tremendous need for this type of housing within the community. She noted that the Sojourner House is only a 16- person shelter, and it takes a long time for people to secure housing, especially as they come into the program without any sort of income. She indicated that they first have to get the income; then they have to save a little. She added that housing is extremely expensive in the Tri - Valley area and encouraged the Commission to look at getting the supportive housing programs within the community because these people do need to have somewhere to go, and one of the things they do not like to see is have someone leave a shelter and then end up back on the street because they cannot maintain rents at a level that they just cannot afford on a minimum -wage job. Leo Lam stated that he has a business on Nevada Street by Bernal Avenue, right on one of the overlay areas, and is very concerned about bringing this program to this area. He indicated that he has also lived in Pleasanton for about 20 years and has PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, January 23, 2013 Page 36 of 44