THE MARIN civil grand jury's call for the county to do more to provide emergency shelter for the homeless represents a strong and independent assessment of a critical shortcoming in local government's response to a growing need.
The grand jury's recommendation couldn't come at a better - or more economically urgent - time.
Supervisor Steve Kinsey said the county is reassessing its homeless strategy.
Such an assessment is overdue.
The county's emergency winter shelter was housing 60 people when it was closed last month for lack of funding. Those 60 people were left to fend for themselves - making a compelling case for the need for more beds for the homeless in Marin. The county's other shelters already were full.
The grand jury report, "Marin's homeless - The 'invisible' problem that won't disappear," urges the county to shift its strategy and create a full-time coordinator of homeless services to provide the leadership needed to effectively address Marin's growing homeless problem.
The report also recommends that homelessness be one of the board's five top priorities.
Marin is not doing enough - "not even close," the grand jury says, especially when compared to other Bay Area counties.
The grand jury is right: There is poverty in the paradise known as Marin, and pretending the problem doesn't exist is just wrong.
The number of homeless is evident from the local shelters that turn people away because they don't have enough space.
Posted: 04/27/2009 12:08:29 AM PDT, Marin Independent Journal
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