Select committee approves four behavioral-health and shelter contract amendments, seeks systemwide provider mapping

The Homelessness and Behavioral Health Select Committee on April 28 voted unanimously to approve four separate contract amendments that expand behavioral-health and shelter services while urging departments to better map the city’s system of care.

The committee approved: a second amendment with Richmond Area Multi Services (RAMS) that extends the grant through June 30, 2027 and raised the not-to-exceed amount to about $61,000,000; an amendment with Westside Community Mental Health Center increasing the contract to roughly $15.6 million through June 30, 2026; an amendment with Homeless Children’s Network raising the total to about $17.5 million through December 31, 2027; and a three-year extension and augmentation with 5 Keys Schools and Programs to operate the Baldwin Safe Navigation Center, increasing its not-to-exceed to about $37.1 million.

Chair Supervisor Hillary Ronan, who convened the inaugural meeting, framed the committee as a vehicle to place contracts “within a system of care” rather than reviewing them in isolation. She asked DPH to produce a single landscape document that lists contracted providers, bed types, expected clients and current availability so supervisors can compare individual contracts against systemwide needs.

The budget and legislative analyst (BLA) recommended approval for each item after reviewing budgets and contractor performance. On Item 1, BLA analyst Nick Menard told the committee the amendment would increase the RAMS agreement and that “the financial condition of RAMS appears to be healthy” based on the most recent fiscal statements; the BLA also said client-facing programs were meeting contracted units of service.

Presenters described program specifics during the committee’s review. DPH’s Max Rocha said the RAMS amendment funds four program areas, including an adult outpatient clinic that reaches about 600 unduplicated clients per year and Broderick Street House, a 33‑bed adult residential facility. For Item 2, DPH and medical staff explained Westside’s methadone and buprenorphine program is contracted to serve about 280 people (roughly 10% of the city’s opioid treatment capacity) and that pandemic-era renovation and workforce shortages temporarily reduced throughput.

Members repeatedly pressed departments on capacity, transparency and monitoring. “We will take it back with department then work on that,” DPH staff said when asked about creating the provider-and-bed inventory; the BLA said it was already compiling budget-level data to support mapping efforts. Chair Ronan praised some contract terms — notably, she highlighted that some DPH contracts now include automatic cost-of-doing-business escalators — but said the committee’s principal goal is clearer systemwide oversight.

Public comment ranged from praise for service providers to calls for stronger needs assessments and fiscal accountability. Several commenters urged more permanent supportive housing rather than higher-cost shelter operations; others described personal experiences with the behavioral-health system.

Votes and next steps: Each of the four items was sent to the full Board with a positive recommendation. The committee recorded unanimous votes (3 ayes each). Committee members asked departments to return with the requested system mapping, and to provide follow-up performance and monitoring information as contracts are implemented.

Funding and scale: The amendments contain material sums and multi-year extensions: RAMS (not-to-exceed ~$61.0M, through 06/30/2027); Westside (~$15.6M, through 06/30/2026); Homeless Children’s Network (~$17.5M, through 12/31/2027); Baldwin/5 Keys (~$37.1M, through 06/30/2026). Broderick Street House is a 33‑bed residential facility; the Baldwin navigation center provides 180 non‑congregate units and HSH reported the Baldwin has served 291 clients since opening and that the city’s current shelter portfolio includes 987 non‑congregate beds and 1,471 congregate beds.

The committee emphasized that approving contracts is only the start: supervisors asked for quarterly monitoring data, clearer performance metrics and a consolidated provider/bed inventory to better evaluate whether contracts meet citywide needs. Departments agreed to return with information and cooperate with the BLA and the committee’s oversight requests.

Ending: All four contracts were recommended to the full Board with positive recommendation and will appear on the Board agenda on May 9 unless otherwise stated. The committee directed DPH and HSH to produce the systemwide mapping documents and to return with monitoring results for the contracts.